


Cherry and Atticus in the Judas Contract

by PerkyGoth14



Category: Teen Titans - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-20 12:23:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 21,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17022564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PerkyGoth14/pseuds/PerkyGoth14
Summary: After Cherry's birthday celebration, the Teen Titans are asked to team up with the one known as Damian Wayne, the son of Batman, and an earth-bender known as Terra who has more to her than meets the eye. They must all work together in order to go up against the brutal force known as Brother Blood.





	1. Chapter 1

Bat-Mite, Lady Gothika, and Sayia Man had just finished a sparring match and decided to check the monitor room.

"Oh, you've GOT to be kidding me: all that sophisticated crime-locating tech, and he wastes it on... PLAYING VIDEO GAMES?!" Bat-Mite groused. "Honestly, the nerve of that bonebrain... I bet he doesn't even KNOW what day it is!"

So Bat-Mite conjured up a paper bag, blew air into it, and snuck up behind Beast Boy... And then, he burst the bag with an ear-rattling BAM! Lady Gothika just gave her traditional deadpan gaze.

"Yo! What the heck was that for?!" Beast Boy complained.

"This is sophisticated technology! You can't go using it for something so... Frivolous!" Bat-Mite griped.

Suddenly, the screen began flashing the words CRIME IN PROGRESS in bright-red letters.

"And it looks like you won't get the chance to do it further!" Sayia Man added, glancing at the warning.

"This better be good..." Lady Gothika let out a small, yet noticeable sigh.

Sayia Man read over the transmission. "Apparently a meta-human with earth-moving abilities is attacking the Golden Gate bridge. So I suppose we better get moving!" he concluded.

"All right, let's get going then." Lady Gothika said.

"Hey... It'll be okay..." Sayia Man smiled. "Cheer up."

Lady Gothika nodded to him, but she didn't smile.

And so, they got into the T-Car and headed out, with Sayia Man driving shotgun, BB in the passenger seat, and LG and Bat-Mite in the back.

Bat-Mite had noticed LG's sadder-than usual attitude and decided to ask about it. "Hey, LG... What's eating you? I get that you're a Goth, but you seem... How do I say this... Not as perky as your snarky attitude would normally imply."

"Nothing..." Lady Gothika shrugged to him.

Bat-Mite sighed. "This is about your birthday, isn't it?" he asked quietly. "Batman gets like this around HIS birthdays each year, according to Nightwing..."

Lady Gothika looked to him a bit emotionally. "This will be my first one without my parents."

Bat-Mite looked confused. "Why? Are they somewhere else?"

"I don't know where they are now..." Lady Gothika told him. "I haven't seen them since Sayia Man and I joined the superhero business."

Bat-Mite's eyes widened, and he got a wide smile on his face. "Well~ that might change... Y'never know..." he replied nonchalantly.

Lady Gothika shrugged as she looked emotional.

"Besides, things could get better, specially when we get back to the tower!" Bat-Mite continued as they got closer to the site of the bridge. "I've got something pretty big planned~!" he chuckled.

"Hmm..." Lady Gothika just let out an indifferent hum.

Sayia Man soon walked up to his best friend before giving a small smile and then used his fingertips to turn the corners of her mouth right-side up to turn the frown upside down.

"She'll do it herself when she's good and ready," Bat-Mite replied as they stopped by the bridge, which was surrounded by armed cops. "Besides, we're here already!"

"All right... Let's go." Lady Gothika said before walking forward.

Sayia Man frowned. "Man, I've never seen her this down before... Then again, I can't really blame her."

Beast Boy got out and did a few stretches to limber up.

"Alright, the Teen Titans! Thank God you showed up!" said one cop. "There's some crazy broad trying to trash the bridge!"

"We'll see if we can't BRIDGE a solution to this problem, officers." Bat-Mite quipped. He was met with only cricket chirping. "Okay, so they can't all be winners... Titans, go..." he sighed, as Beast Boy turned into a bird and flew up to the angry girl, who was pelting the bridge's supports with boulders.

"What's the matter, hon; lose your boyfriend?" Beast Boy asked. "C'mon, it's alright; tell Uncle Beast Boy all about it."

The girl, who was clad in brown clothing, turned and glared. "Beast Boy? So those must also be the Titans. You all stay away from me!" she growled.

"Geez lou-ISE! Somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning..." A snarky voice quipped, followed by a blur of orange-and-yellow zipping past our heroes.

"She's probably troubled." Sayia Man suggested.

"Yeah... Too bad I'm not a therapist..." replied an orange-haired girl in a purple and green jumpsuit as she coiled her midsection around the girl's body to restrain her.

"Come on, LG." Sayia Man told his best friend before going off.

Lady Gothika blinked and she let out a small sigh before going to join the others.

The girl angrily struggled in her bonds to get loose, but she was stuck. "I said stay away...you don't understand!" she grunted.

The speedy kid scoffed. "Riiiight. I'm so certain you have a good reason for attacking a bridge. What do you have against vehicular travel routes, jerk?!" he snapped.

"Go AWAY!" The girl demanded as she sounded quite peeved off by their intrusion.

"Nothin' doin', sister," Bat-Mite snapped. "You don't attack bridges in OUR town and not expect us to get involved. So what's it gonna be: fight a battle you're gonna lose, or knowing when to turn tail and retreat? Use the brain you have within that rock-obsessed head of yours and approach this logically."

The girl glanced at the opponents surrounding her, sweat beading down her brow. Finally, she sighed. "Okay, the bridge stays in one piece... I can't let myself be caught. For now, Titans, you win." She then leapt off of the bridge. "But next time we meet, I'll have to kill all of you... And save Beast Boy for LAST!" she vowed, aiming her arms down at the ground, and suddenly a pillar of rocks and dirt emerged from the ground to catch her. "The name's Terra, as in Earth, AKA my main element! And next time, I won't be so nice!" she snapped, as a blast of geothermal volcanic energy shot her into the sky and out of sight.

"Well, at least the bridge is safe," Bat-Mite sighed. "Might as well go back to HQ. Methinks they've got something grand cooked up for your special day!"

"I just hope that girl doesn't destroy the world first..." Lady Gothika muttered.

"I'm sure she won't." Sayia Man smiled, trying to look on the bright side as always for her sake.

"And if she tries to, we'll stop her, remember?" Bat-Mite replied confidently. "Now let's head back to base."

Lady Gothika didn't say anything and just stared off into space as her mind seemed to be elsewhere.

And so they headed back to the tower, though Bat-Mite seemed a little too certain of himself. When they arrived, they headed up to the main room... But the lights were all out.

"Why is it dark in here?!" Lady Gothika asked.

"I thought you liked the dark." Sayia Man teased his best friend.

Suddenly, the lights shot on, and the other Titans yelled "SURPRISE!" Everyone of them was there-even Cherry's parents!

Bat-Mite smiled proudly. "What'd I tell ya earlier?" he asked.

"Wah!" Lady Gothika yelped, falling to the floor and shivering.

"She'll be fine in a minute." Sayia Man told the others.

Cherry was soon out of costume and on the couch and soon woke up to see her surprise party as everyone came to check on her.

"Well...? Did I do good or what?" Lionel asked.

"Oh, no... Don't tell me she didn't like the party...?" Starfire asked, worried.

"Cherry and surprises are kind of an interesting story..." Atticus said. "It's the thought that counts though."

"What happened?" Cherry muttered as she came to.

"You passed out..." Atticus told her. "I'm sorry, Cherry... It was Lionel's idea."

"Yeah! I even got your parents to show up!" Lionel beamed. "I saw how bummed you were in the car, so I got the others to invite 'em to the party!"

Bud and Michelle smiled and hugged Cherry tightly, smothering her a bit.

"Mom! Dad!" Cherry gasped, both from surprise and the smothering. "Oh, too tight... Wah!"

"Hi, I'm Lionel Schwartz. Nice to meet'cha!" Lionel beamed.

"I see..." Bud said, a little patiently, though curious.

"Hello, Lionel," Michelle smiled brightly which contrasted to her daughter's personality. "I'm Michelle, and this is my husband, Bud~"

"Cherry was right, you ARE nice people!" Lionel replied.

"Don't mention it." Cherry muffled.

"Of course we are." Michelle giggled to Lionel.

"And your daughter is awesome." Lionel replied, blushing.

"She sure is something," Bud smiled proudly about his daughter. "I just adore my little Cher Bear."

"Yeah... Me too..." Lionel replied. "I got something to confess..." Taking a deep breath, Lionel sighed. "I... Am dating your daughter."

Bud's eyes widened.

"Oh, Cherry has a little boyfriend..." Michelle smiled. "Cherry, why didn't you tell us?"

"You... Didn't... Ask...?" Cherry replied bashfully.

"Yeah... Sorry I didn't tell ya sooner..." Lionel replied sheepishly. "Didn't mean to embarrass ya, Cherry..."

"No, it's okay..." Cherry replied. "I'm just surprised Dad isn't saying anything."

"Bud was always quiet when around new people..." Michelle commented before poking her husband.

Bud seemed to stare down at Lionel, having a typical father reaction to his daughter having a boyfriend.

"Sir, I swear that I didn't do anything bad to her, I promise!" Lionel replied. "Cross my heart!"

"Hmm..." Bud gave a small pout.

"It's so adorable," Michelle smiled. "I was always hoping Cherry would find a special boyfriend for herself."

Lionel blushed. "Anyways... It's a party! Why don't we enjoy it? I'll go get something to eat! Why don't you all join me?" he asked, heading to the food table. "Christ on the crapper, that was AWKWARD..."

Cherry soon zipped away from her parents to get to the table.

Michelle giggled a bit amused. "Come on, dear, let's find some food."

Bud hummed as he joined his wife.

Lionel glanced at Bud, growing more and more nervous while he ate more cheesy nachos. 'Why hasn't he reacted? He's building up like a volcano... But to WHAT?!'

Atticus smiled, happy for Cherry, though a little sad as he thought about his own parents since Cherry had hers.

"How you doing, Atticus?" Michelle smiled.

"I'm fine, Mrs. B, thanks." Atticus smiled back to her.

Lionel swallowed his entire nacho platter in one bite. "Okay... I know I fought demons and supervillains before... But THAT GUY IS MAKING ME CRAZY-NERVOUS!" he yelped.

"Calm down." Cherry told Lionel.

"Fine... It is your big day, after all..." Lionel replied. "And by the way, you're welcome."

"Oh... Thanks..." Cherry said. "Anyway, sorry I've been down lately, I guess I was just feeling a little homesick."

"It's cool; at least your home is alright... My old home stank on ice. I had no parents, no friends, and NO support!" Lionel replied. "Personally I think I'm better off here..."

"Are these cheese curds...?" Cherry asked, almost drooling.

"YEAH!" Lionel realized, his attention drawn.

Cherry wiped her mouth and smiled sheepishly. "I guess I could eat just one..."

"But of COURSE!" Lionel replied, handing the bowl over to her. "It is your day!"

Cherry looked around and soon began to gobble down the cheese curds.

"Share...?" Bud pouted to his daughter.

Cherry soon looked at him and smirked, giving him just one.

"Well... She's got a healthy appetite." Lionel beamed.

"It's good to see Cherry eating... She doesn't eat as much as she used to though when she was younger." Michelle said.

"Moooom~..." Cherry whined.

"Well, either way, Happy Birthday, Cherry. I love you, and I hope all the rest of your special days are just as great as this one." Lionel toasted.

Cherry soon suddenly hugged him out of thanks.

Lionel blushed. "Aw... You're welcome."

Bud couldn't help but soon smile as he hadn't seen Cherry that happy in a LONG time, and everyone else was pretty damn shocked as well, but it was still a great party.

But eventually, it came to a conclusion and Cherry's parents had to say good night and go home. Cherry hugged her parents goodbye as they had to get going and let them go since it was time to go.

"Well, it was nice meeting you two," Lionel commented. "Thanks for coming, and drive safely."

"Thank you! Good night." Michelle smiled.

"Good night, Lionel." Bud added.

"Good night, you two!" Lionel waved.

Cherry's parents soon left, and the team members finished cleaning up and putting the leftovers away.

"That was one heck of a party." Jaime commented.

"Definitely one for the books!" Beast Boy agreed.

"...It was nice." Raven smiled.

"Awesome!" Bat-Mite grinned. "Well, next year will be just as great, for sure!"

Cherry soon laid down on the couch again as she was full and looked tired. Lionel put his costume in the wash and headed to his bedroom... Though he couldn't help but wonder just why that Terra girl was causing trouble at the bridge that day... Atticus handed Cherry a gift wrapped box and soon walked off, patting her on the head. Cherry gave a small smirk before she soon yawned and looked wore out.


	2. Chapter 2

A few weeks later, the team once again encountered Terra and managed to stop her from robbing a bank... Though they received help from not only the speedster boy and the stretchy girl, but a duo of anthropomorphic rabbits, one with blue fur and purple eyes and one with pink fur and blue eyes.

"Rabbits?" Cherry asked, looking at the duo. "Our new teammates are rabbits?!"

"Not JUST rabbits," the blue one replied, unsheathing a sword with a bamboo blade. "Woo Foo warriors who can kick some serious butt!"

"Hm..." Cherry hummed to that.

"My name is Yin, and this is my brother, Yang." The pink rabbit told her.

"The speedy guy is Todd, and the stretchy one is his sister Riley." Yang added.

"Do you represent the Lollipop Guild?" Cherry smirked, a bit cockily.

"No, that's dumb!" Todd snapped. "I'm the new Kid Flash, and Riley is the next Elastic Lass after Rita Farr of the Doom Patrol."

"Hm... Interesting," Cherry smirked. "I have one crazy life full of strange characters."

"But hey, who'd wanna trade it?" Bat-Mite smirked.

Cherry hid a slight eye roll, though she kept her smirk.

"Anyways, let's get down to the important stuff," Bat-Mite decided, approaching the subdued Terra. "What's the big idea? Why'dja rob the bank? And what's the big idea using your earth-bending for crime?"

"Why should I have to tell you anything?" Terra replied.

"Because we can HELP you. And if you DON'T tell, then I can make things very, VERY painful for you," Bat-Mite replied. "Just ask ol' Lex Luthor!"

"Not to mention that on your little path of destruction, you ended up freeing most of the zoo animals!" Riley added. "Luckily we were able to round them up and get them back in their places before anyone got hurt!"

"I have my reasons..." Terra replied mysteriously.

Bat-Mite sighed, irritated. "We won't be getting any answers... At least not yet. Might as well head back to the tower and try again there." he resolved.

"Hmph." Terra pouted.

"Come on then." Cherry said to Bat-Mite.

Bat-Mite nodded, and in a puff of smoke, they vanished... Only to reappear inside Titans Tower. 

"I'm going to my room." Cherry said as she walked off, unfazed by the teleportation.

"See you in a few hours!" Bat-Mite waved, before pulling on a pair of latex gloves. "And lo, the interrogation begins...." he smirked darkly.

A FEW HOURS LATER...

The interrogation had succeeded, and Terra had told the team everything.

"See what a little cooperation can do, Terra?" Bat-Mite beamed. "This way, EVERYONE wins! Including yourself... Princess Tara Markov of Markovia..." he concluded.

Terra scowled. "I don't want your pity."

"Well, we weren't offering it," Yang retorted. "But we WILL help save your parents from those terrorists."

"Yeah! Who KNOWS what kinda great prize you get for savin' royalty?" Todd-Flash grinned.

"Yeah, right,..." Terra replied. "You're gonna save them?"

"Well, we ARE the best of the best. On par with the Justice League!" Bat-Mite beamed proudly.

"Yeah! We even helped 'em defeat a demon a couple years back!" Beast Boy added.

"Hmm... If you're so sure about that, then I guess you can try." Terra just shrugged, still in strong disbelief.

"Oh, ye of little faith..." Damian chuckled darkly, sheathing his sword.

Later that evening, the Titans headed to the train station where Terra's parents were being held prisoner. A few armed thugs stood guard outside the train cars, when they heard Raven's voice.

'Terra was right.... She was expected to return. Tell us where her parents are... NOW!!' her voice boomed.

"One of the Titans?" asked one thug. "Forget it, lady; I ain't saying NOTHING!" 

'Words won't be necessary...' Raven retorted as she began to manifest in front of the thug. 'Not when I can just pull the information from your head.' She concentrated, and eventually sighed. 'Something's not right....this man doesn't KNOW where Terra's parents are...' she reported.

The thugs soon glared at the group.

"No problemó!" Todd replied, zipping right around them. "These guys will be HAPPY to talk, won't they?" he added, grabbing one of the thugs. 

"Nothin' doing, speed boy," the thug responded. "One move, and her parents are gonna get it!"

But then he got knocked out by Beast Boy, who'd turned into a gorilla. "Tsk, tsk, tsk... Now don't you feel ridiculous?" Beast Boy chided. "I think this one's the leader; he's the only one with an IQ higher than 75."

Another thug tried to make a run for it, but LG knocked him out with a well-timed punch to the jaw. "Going somewhere? Not quite." she smirked.

"Now make him tell me where my parents are," Terra snapped. "Cuz if YOU don't, then I will."

"Whoa, ease up!" Bat-Mite urged. "You DON'T wanna make trouble with LG. Cuz if you do, then you got trouble from ME."

"Besides, focus that aggression on the parent-stealers." Sayia Man added.

Terra grumbled and turned to the thug that Todd had pinned to the wall. "I want my parents. Where ARE they? Tell me!" she demanded.

The thug coughed. "They're dead.... They been dead all along..." he wheezed. "They croaked before they were even taken from their country... We've just been using you this whole time..."

Terra scowled. "No. You lie... They CAN'T be dead. I KNOW they're alive... I've been searching for them all this time...YOU'RE LYING!!! AND I'LL MAKE YOU PAY FOR IT!!!" she roared, summoning a monstrous mass of earth and rock from under herself in a fit of rage.

"Terra, I'm so sorry." Sayia Man frowned as he knew how she felt.

"Sympathize later, save our butts first!" Yang yelped. "If she don't stop quaking, then we're ALL gonna be joining her parents soon!"

"Relax, Beast Boy and I have this covered," Sayia Man replied as he and the shape-shifter approached the earth-bender. "Terra... I know it hurts to lose your parents. Beast Boy lost his, and I never knew mine... But you don't have to be alone."

Terra's hands trembled, and the earthquake stopped. "Oh, God, guys... I just dunno WHAT to do anymore..." she sobbed.

Beast Boy gave her a hug. "He's right. We're your friends now." he agreed.

"Believe me, I was there myself." Lady Gothika said to Terra about how she felt.

Raven glanced at Terra, and her face went even paler than normal.

"What's got YOU so spooked?" Bat-Mite asked.

"The girl..." Raven responded. "She says she needs help, but... Why do I sense something else...?"

Bat-Mite pondered in response. "Good question; let's hope we get an answer that's just as good sometime..." he replied, as they looked on.

2 MONTHS LATER....

On a clear, moonlit night, a trio of soldiers clad in yellow armor stood guard outside their mountain fortress, each of them armed with a gun. While two were patrolling the area around the mountain, one of them tripped and fell, and got knee-slammed by Starfire.

"They're ready." Blue Beetle noted. 

"They're SLOW." Damian retorted.

"Seriously? I barely had time to answer a post!" Beast Boy replied before morphing into an owl and getting into formation with the others.

Nightwing glanced up at the mountain surface. "It'll be a tough climb..." he noted.

"Dude, you realize we have an earth-bender on our team, right?" Yang commented.

"Sure, why not?" Terra remarked. "I do all the dirty work around here..."

"Less whining, more bending, alright?" Todd retorted.

"I'll bend you." Terra muttered to him.

"Yeah, whatever, lovebirds." Yin remarked mischievously.

"HEY!" Terra and Yang glared to that.

"I just know that I'm not climbing unless I can ride on Sayia Man's back." Lady Gothika commented dryly.

Terra rolled her eyes and began using her geokinetic powers to create a tunnel in the mountainside.

"Looks like we won't HAVE to climb," Bat-Mite observed. "Ladies first, naturally."

Scarab seemed to shake against Blue Beetle's back.

"Quiet down!" Blue Beetle advised. "The bug's nervous."

"I don't blame it," Raven replied, before glancing at Beast Boy. "How come you're so calm?"

"Clearly someone's never been a gopher before." Beast Boy replied as their platform rose higher through the innards of the mountain.

"How's it going, Terra?" Sayia Man asked.

"I'm trying!" Terra replied through grunts.

Some of the debris hit Scarab which then made Raven freeze in position and hit Beast Boy by accident. 

"Scarab, stop!" Blue Beetle scolded.

"Control that thing, Beetle, or I'll control it for you." Damian threatened, grabbing his sword.

"Whoa, whoa! You REALLY wanna risk that in a confined space like this?" asked Bat-Mite.

"How about a roomier place like in a box going under the ocean?" Lady Gothika smirked, venomously.

"Calm down." Starfire told the others, raising her hand as a green flame shined in her hand.

"Cantaloupe-chest is right!" Yang replied. "We gotta focus!"

"Wow." Sayia Man and Lady Gothika muttered about 'Cantaloupe Chest'.

"The enemy is above us, you have to channel all your thought to that," Nightwing advised Terra. "Remember, these opponents are different, uh, as Kori will tell you."

"No, keep going~" Starfire smirked.

"I've been studying them since I left the Titans," Nightwing continued. "They're zealous, extremists, they'll sacrifice themselves without hesitation to get to you, so the quicker we take them down, the better," he then smiled to the alien princess. "That about cover it?" 

"Very well said." Starfire approved.

"Alright then..." Bat-Mite replied, popping his knuckles. "Let's dish out some justice!"

They soon rumbled slightly.

"Terra, can you do this?" Starfire asked.

"Yes, if you don't shut up!" Terra smirked.

"Love that feisty attitude," Bat-Mite commented. "But you've gotta channel it into beating those guys up!"

They soon stopped as the earth-bender soon looked wore out.

"We're six inches under the floor... Who wants to knock?" Terra asked, breathlessly.

"Ooh, ME!!" Bat-Mite replied, inflating his fist to a very large size and drawing it back.

Starfire looked to him and soon let him go since he wanted to do it. And so Bat-Mite slammed his fist into the ground, smashing a hole in it and allowing the Titans to enter. Sayia Man soon got on his hands and knees. Lady Gothika then stepped over him and soon hoisted herself through the hole before he followed her.

"Titans, GO!" Starfire called out as she shot fire from her hands.

And the brawl was ON! The Titans were giving it their a-game, and none of them was daring to back down from the fight. The guards shot their blasters, but Terra just made a rockwall to shield herself.

"Thanks for getting us into the impenetrable HIVE base, Terra," she mocked, irritated that she hadn't been thanked. "You're the best, Terra.... Sheesh."

But as one guard was about to rush her, he was KO'd by Beast Boy, in the form of a goat. But another one started rushing towards them.

"This one's all yours, mama!" Beast Boy grinned before becoming a falcon and flying aside. 

The guy who was trying to attack Terra soon found himself on the business end of a stone fist, which slammed him into a wall. Sayia Man's eyes glowed as he began to fight with his strength and special abilities. The guards were quickly taken down in a matter of minutes, though Todd was having plenty of fun freaking the guards out and KO'ing them shortly afterward. Yin soon took out some guards of her own with her magic and Lady Gothika helped a bit with her own magical abilities. Yang took out some with his physical fighting, and Riley did the same with her stretch powers.

"Come on, Terra!" Sayia Man called out.

"Like I couldn't take out these jokers all by myself." Terra snorted before she began to run.

"There IS such a thing as being TOO arrogant, y'know!" Bat-Mite replied. Just then, an alarm rang out.

"They've prepared well," Damien commented, landing on his feet. "Reaction time's much better."

"Robin, quit complimenting the bad guys," Nightwing retorted. "But he has a point. We should be ready for anything."

Suddenly, a door opened, revealing three mech suits like the one Ellen Ripley used in 1979.

"Whoa, methinks that these guys have been watching Ridley Scott's Alien way too often." Todd remarked.

"I haven't watched that movie yet." Lady Gothika said out of embarrassment.

"Eh, it's alright for its time," Bat-Mite shrugged. "You're not missing much, unless you feel like losing your appetite for three weeks."

Lady Gothika merely shrugged since she was a cult movie fan. The enemies began to shoot at them which meant that they had to get out of the way, but the bullets bounced off of Sayia Man as he helped them to safety.

"You are an android, but I AM A MAN!!!" Bat-Mite boomed, punching one of the robots and causing it to be smashed into rubble.

"These jerks must buy their bad-guy stuff in bulk!" Beast Boy commented, as they hid behind a few shipping containers.

"How about we do that move you taught me last weekend?" asked Nightwing. "Now?" responded Starfire, blushing. "I admire your boldness, but what will the team think?"

"What?" asked Nightwing, confused. "No, not... Okay, you got me. The TRAINING move, please."

So Starfire flew up with Nightwing in her grip and dropped him atop one of the mecha-walkers. He then KO'd its pilot and used it to shoot another, knocking it over. But another one fired on the walker, causing Nightwing to bail out.

Meanwhile, Robin, Raven, Yang and Beast Boy, now in the form of a mammoth, charged out of hiding. Robin sliced off one of the robot's arms, and Beast Boy knocked it over. Two of the guards started shooting at them, but Raven used her power and formed a dark phoenix that flew upward and knocked them through the wall.

"STRIKE!" Bat-Mite cheered, as the others charged into another room. Blue Beetle, Terra and Yang took out some of the guards, but the Scarab was firing lasers wildly at both friend and foe alike.

Meanwhile, Nightwing tried hacking into the HIVE computer system, but the screen displayed the message "LOCKDOWN". 

Luckily, Starfire was able to keep the approaching guards at bay by firing starbolts at them. "Could you NOT leave yourself open like that?" she asked. "I worry."

"I'm sorry, babe." Nightwing replied, before the computer began to beep, displaying the message "DENIED".

Lady Gothika fought some enemies with her own combat, but got hit in the face at one point, making her grunt.

"Hey, slug-face; try pickin' on somebody less than your own size!" Bat-Mite snapped at the enemy as he slammed him in the stomach, sending him flying.

Lady Gothika rubbed her sore eye with a small glaring scowl.

"No worry, I can fix that," Bat-Mite commented, snapping his fingers and healing her eye. "Been practicing that for two months now!"

Lady Gothika blinked her sore eye and then sighed in relief.

"Who hit you?" Sayia Man asked LG. "I'll knock him into outer space!" 

"I think Bat-Mite beat you to the punch." Lady Gothika smirked.

"Yeah, an' if anyone hurts 'er again, then I'll make 'em wish they were never born!!" Bat-Mite growled.

"I hear that." Sayia Man agreed as LG was his best friend and all.

"Man, who knew a punch in the eye could really smart?" Lady Gothika complained. "Has anyone seen Nightwing and Starfire?"

"I saw 'em heading to some control room," Bat-Mite replied. "Probably tryin' to hack the system to get the data..."

"That makes sense..." Lady Gothika narrowed her eyes. "I could help... I'm a computer hacker after all."

Bat-Mite rolled his eyes. "Jeez, what ELSE have you not told me about yourself?" he chided.

"What?" Lady Gothika narrowed her eyes to that.

"It's just that most of the stuff I learn about you comes as a surprise to me since I didn't know about it beforehand." Bat-Mite explained.

"I am a very mysterious girl of the darkness." Lady Gothika grinned mysteriously.

Sayia Man soon jumped over her head and punched a guy coming to hit her.

"NEVER DO THAT AGAIN!" Lady Gothika scolded.

"At least we're alive," Bat-Mite sighed. "And I guess regardless of how much I learn about you, you'll always find a way to be mysterious."

"Mm-hmm~" Lady Gothika smirked. "Try and keep up, Batty Bat~"

Bat-Mite blushed at the new nickname. "Er, uh, anyways, the others are heading to regroup with Star and Nightwing. I suggest we do the same." he managed to say.

"Come on, LG. "Sayia Man said before running off.

Lady Gothika smirked to Bat-Mite and soon ran after her best friend. Bat-Mite quickly took off after them, and soon they were in the control room with the others.


	3. Chapter 3

"Okay, good a place as any," Nightwing decided. "I got an apartment in the city; I hoped maybe we could share it. Y'know.... Together."

"Oh, snap." Blue Beetle whispered.

"I don't think I've been this psyched since Spider-Man and Deadpool issue #11." Lady Gothika whispered to herself.

"Y'mean the one where Penn & Teller guest star?" Bat-Mite whispered back.

Lady Gothika soon let out a fan girl yell since Bat-Mite knew exactly what she was talking about. Starfire gasped in delight at the small box Nightwing was holding, which she opened to reveal... A key.

"What, no rock? Total letdown..." Terra scoffed.

"On Tamaran, everyone would gossip, so it's a good thing we live here." Starfire smiled to Nightwing before bringing him into a hug.

"What I'm getting is that they're too good to hang with us." Beast Boy complained.

"Yeah, that's the takeaway." Raven muttered.

"Aw, congrats, you two!" Bat-Mite beamed. "Should we bring a housewarming gift? I feel like that'd be the courteous thing to do..."

Just then, Beast Boy's phone vibrated, and he looked at it. "Hey, I'm over a million followers!" he grinned.

"Congratulations to you too, Beast Boy." Sayia Man replied politely.

"Good day for everyone, all around," Bat-Mite beamed. "Seriously, though, we should probably bring something over as a present..."

LATER, AT TITANS TOWER...

Jaime and Gar were in the rec room playing Foosball, and Lionel, Cherry, Atticus, Yang, and Todd were chilling on the beanbag chairs and reading comics. Terra soon walked in.

"Hey there, stranger." Cherry said as she briefly glanced up.

"Hey." Terra replied before going to check the pizza box. 

Gar glanced up and grinned. Terra rolled her eyes as she seemed to had lost her appetite and soon walked off, not taking any pizza.

"Call me Hefe!" Jaime smirked as he had won the game before smirking to the green boy. "You need to get your head in the game, Gar!"

Gar didn't respond and watched as Terra left the room.

"Or maybe your head's in a different game." Jaime then smirked to that.

"Yeah, the game of lo~ve!" Lionel snickered. "And when it comes to THAT, he's hitting nothing but strikes!"

"Who wouldn't wanna date me? I'm awesome!" Gar grinned.

Cherry soon burst out laughing to that.

"That's the most humorous thing you've said all day, bud." Lionel replied.

"Want my advice?" asked Jaime. "Quit turnin' into a chimp and stealing monkey-kisses." he caught Gar in a headlock and noogied him.

"People think that's adorable!" Gar protested.

"Ah, no. People think I'M adorable in my Bat-Mite form, ESPECIALLY the folks in Japan; they have a whole subculture centered on cute things!" Lionel replied.

"Whoa, time out... Gotta make a call." Jaime said, taking out his phone before shoving Gar slightly. 

"Cherry, do you think I'm cute?" Gar soon asked the perky goth.

"Uh.... Define cute..." Cherry replied. "Cute as in a baby vampire bat or...?"

"I think he means the other kind," Lionel replied.

"Like John Stamos from what my mother says?" Cherry smirked.

"...Sure, yeah," Lionel replied. "It WAS the 80's..."

"If you ask my mother if she remembers anything about Full House, she'll just say 'Uncle Jesse'." Cherry smirked.

"True. Dave Coulier was.... Well, he was there." Lionel replied.

"I swear he was funnier when I was a kid." Cherry muttered to that.

"A lot of stuff seems better at that point," Lionel replied. "Dave Coulier.... Well, he's just not very good at voice acting. He proved that when he replaced Lorenzo Music in the Ghostbusters cartoon."

"Guh... That was HIM?!" Cherry complained.

"Yeah, around Season 5. Apparently Bill Murray complained and said Lorenzo sounded too much like Garfield, so the producers had to replace him... Not a smart move," Lionel replied. "And then this bunch of focus-group nitwits stripped Janine of her snarky attitude, made the show more childish, and diverted most of the focus to Slimer. I mean, I like the little spud, but he didn't need to become the star of the show!"

Gar looked annoyed with them and soon walked off.

"You could've been a little nice with your critique." Atticus said to Cherry.

"Hey, he needed to know one way or another," Lionel replied. "Besides, he's a big boy, he'll be alright."

Atticus sighed to them, rolling his eyes before returning to his comic.

Elsewhere, Starfire, Riley, and Yin were doing some combat practice in the simulation room. Starfire began to fight some enemies with her own staff as they approached her with battle axes. Luckily, Yin was able to back her up by using her magic to dispatch the enemies.

"Incoming!" Riley called out and soon dodged the artillery.

Luckily Starfire was able to get rid of it in a matter of minutes.

"Aww... Was that the last one?" Yin pouted.

"Looks like it." Riley said to her.

"Regardless, your effort was impressive and your teamwork was commendable," Starfire replied. "In short, you were amazing!"

"Thank you." Yin and Riley replied.

"You're welcome." Starfire smiled.

Someone had soon stumbled into the room.

"Terra..." Starfire spoke to her. "Would you like to join us? The staff helps clear the mind."

"No thanks, I'm just trying to avoid Green Bean for a while," Terra replied. "I never cared much for the zoo."

"Fair enough," Riley shrugged. "He means well, but he's kind of a pain."

"Um... If he's bothering you...?" Starfire began.

"He's just a jerk," Terra shrugged before she glanced over to see Raven meditating. "Is it true what they say about her? That she has her father trapped in that jewel on her head?"

"Yes, his name's Trigon. He's a demon," Starfire informed. "They have... Issues."

Yin and Riley nodded in agreement.

"At least she knows where she can find him." Terra pouted.

"You should talk to her more," Starfire advised. "You will find that Raven can be quite... Interesting."

"No, thanks. Too creepy for me." Terra said before leaving.

Yin shrugged. "I guess everyone's got their pet peeves."

Raven soon glanced over as though she had sensed Terra's presence to come and go.

"Sorry about that, Raven." Riley said.

"Meh." Raven shrugged to the redheaded girl.

"...Okay..." Riley replied, uncertain.

Cherry was soon seen reading a comic book of Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

"I feel like that's an Easter Egg from another continuity." Atticus commented to Cherry's comic choice. 

Lionel glanced at Atticus. "Eh, sure, man. Whatever works..." he shrugged.

"Just thought I'd try it out," Cherry shrugged back, but soon put the comics down and then took out a different comic which fit her dark sense of humor a lot better which was Lenore: The Cute Little Dead Girl. "Ah, much better."

"Fascinating..." Lionel observed.

"Do you know Lenore?" Cherry asked him. 

Atticus soon got out of the way as that comic was too dark, even for him.

"Eh, not really," Lionel replied. "I'm kinda in the dark about that one, so to speak. But I do understand the name is a reference to Edgar Allen Poe's The Raven."

"That it is," Cherry replied. "Lenore was basically a little girl who died 100 years ago, but comes back to life, and has misadventures, such as accidentally killing people. She plays Leap Frog with a little girl and she ends up flying into a wood chipper."

"Sounds like a mix of Invader ZIM and Making Fiends... With just a hint of South Park..." Lionel replied. "Sounds like a hoot. Mind if I sneak a peek?"

"Well... Okay," Cherry replied. "I could never share with Atticus, it always makes him feel uncomfortable."

Lionel shrugged. "Everyone's got their peeves, I suppose."

"Just know that this is a bit graphic..." Cherry warned about Lenore. "It wouldn't surprise me though if Roman Dirge had worked on Invader ZIM. That was such a messed up cartoon, I wish I could've been older when it came out though."

"I hear the creator's gonna make a new movie for the series..." Lionel replied, as he read. "Gonna be pretty twisted. And graphic? Don't worry, I watch South Park regularly; I figure I'll be alright."

"Hmm..." Cherry smirked about the idea of an Invader ZIM movie with her hands rubbing together. "I've always been a Gaz in my lifetime."

"...That seems likely..." Lionel commented. "Figure that makes me Zim.... Although not as arrogant or blind to his own shortcomings..."

"Atticus, you can be Dib because you have a big head." Cherry said.

"Hey!" Atticus glared.

"She makes a good point.... So Beast Boy is probably Gir..." Lionel concluded.

Cherry snickered and snorted to that.

"Nice to see you guys stay focused." Atticus deadpanned. 

"Meh." Cherry shrugged.

"Eh, it's nice to have a bit of fun sometimes," Lionel retorted. "No sense being serious all the time."

"But the Teen Titans are always serious with no fun whatsoever, hur, dur, dur~" Cherry said in a goofy voice, mocking certain cartoon critics.

Lionel snorted. "If people want seriousness with no fun, they can go watch a documentary."

"Ugh." Cherry groaned about documentaries.

"I'm gonna go take a look around." Atticus said as he put his comic book down and went to explore.

"Besides, there's a difference between being too serious and not knowing when to be serious. The key is to find a middle ground," Lionel continued. "The live-action Titans series, however, is TOO serious. They even had Nightwing say 'F--k Batman' before he beat these thugs within an inch of their lives!"

"I never saw the live-action Titans series... I only heard about it." Cherry replied.

"Well, you're lucky. Apparently Starfire has these flame powers that make her seem like a fire-bender, not to mention her costume reminds me of something that a prostitute would wear." Lionel continued.

"Seriously?" Cherry soon deadpanned.

"Seriously. And Beast Boy is played by the actor who voiced Hiro Hamada in Big Hero 6, but it seems like he barely even emotes in his performance," Lionel elaborated. "Plus, they made Raven more timid and less snarky, not to mention they made Hawk and Dove (who is supposed to be a pacifist) total fight-mongers."

"So I see." Cherry replied.

"Plus, it is trying WAY too hard to be edgy and mature, like a little kid trying to pass himself off as a grown-up." Lionel concluded.

"And people say I'm useless." Cherry muttered snarkily with a smirk.

"That's bullshit and you KNOW it," Lionel retorted. "You're worth more than you think. Besides, if we DID see it, we could do like they do on Mystery Science Theater 3000 and comically rag on the episodes and poke fun at them for being too serious and moody. Hey, that could be a new series we might do sometime! And I could even invite our dimensional counterparts to watch it with us and rag on it as well!"

"I usually like to poke fun at old cartoons with my parents." Cherry smiled bashfully about one of her strange hobbies.

"Oh, cool!" Lionel beamed. "Maybe we could do that with them sometime. Might be nice."

"Mm..." Cherry shrugged. "It's mostly between us, but... I think they can make an exception."

"Double-cool!" Lionel beamed. "I still think doing an MST3K on the first episode of Titans would be worth a few laughs," he then added. "Might even draw in some more readers!"

"Meh, I'll see what happens." Cherry shrugged.

Atticus soon began to explore and eventually came to check on Damian.

In the main control room, Nightwing was watching some of the video files referring to a man by the name of "Brother Blood".

"Grandfather would've been impressed with Blood," remarked Damian. "Running a worldwide cult, as well as H.I.V.E."

"They're the same thing; he just makes them LOOK separate." Richard replied. "...Do you EVER get out of that uniform?"

"Only when I bathe." Damian replied.

Richard smirked. "Might be time."

Damian sniffed under his armpit, then turned back. "Nah, I'm good," he replied. "Besides, I'm goin' out."

"I hear you're gone a lot," Richard replied. "Where do you go?"

"You DO realize I'm not some child who needs permission to go outside, correct?" Damian retorted.

"I wasn't interrogating, Damian," Richard smiled. "Just taking an interest."

"Oh..." Damian realized. "I go on patrol. By the way, I should offer congratulations on your cohabitation, Grayson. Starfire has proven herself to be a decent leader. I approve."

"Thank you." Richard replied.

"Have you found anything in the H.I.V.E. Files?" asked Starfire, who'd just finished taking a shower.

"Nothing earth-shaking, but I'm still checking."

"Sounds like you got squat," remarked Terra. "I love endangering my life for nothing."

"Which is why I've added the newest files to the ones too damaged to read, from the previous raids," Richard explained. "I'm hoping the computer will find a connection we missed. It could take the program a day or two."

"Not your WORST idea," Damian remarked, which only earned a sideways glance from Richard. "What?"

Atticus then came by.

Damian glanced over at Atticus. "What're you doing here?" he asked.

"Just wanted to see how you're doing." Atticus replied with a small friendly smile.

"Oh. Well, I'm about to head out on patrol." Damian replied casually.

"Okay, that's good." Atticus replied, giving Damian some privacy.


	4. Chapter 4

Meanwhile, Jaime had headed out for a walk, and Gar, Terra, Lionel, Cherry, and Riley had gone with him.

"Couldja slow down, Jaime?" asked Gar.

"Go back to the tower, then," Jaime retorted. "Nobody asked you to come."

"Ah, c'mon; we're here to support you!" Gar replied.

"I'm not," Terra chimed in, tossing her empty cup in a trashcan. Everyone turned and glanced at her. "...What I mean is, I respect Jaime not wanting to talk. In fact, more people should learn to shut their mouths..." she added, glancing at Gar.

Lionel chuckled at that.

"Wow... Methinks somebody's watched the Rush Hour trilogy." Todd commented.

"No spoilers, I still haven't seen 2 or 3!" Cherry covered her ears to that.

"Looks like I know what we're watchin' for Friday's movie night!" Yang grinned.

"Fine by me, I did enjoy the first one." Cherry replied.

Jaime soon fixed his eyes on across the street as he took a few steps over. 

"Uh... Okay, I give up." Gar shrugged of what his friend was staring at.

"The center," Jaime pointed out. "My parents volunteer for the one in my town."

"And...?" Terra replied.

"Maybe I should volunteer." Jaime suggested.

Terra snorted. "Yeah, right," The others turned and glanced at her. "We're Titans; we don't serve soup."

"You don't hafta move a mountain to help people, Terra," Jaime explained. "Besides, I gotta find a way to make the bug more comfortable around humans."

"A novel idea, man!" Lionel commented.

And so, they entered the center, where Jaime spotted a red-headed girl his age working with a sign. "Can I help you?" she asked.

"Yes, um..." Jaime's eyes read her name tag. "...Traci? I was wondering who I could speak to about volunteering."

"That would be me." Traci replied.

"...And there it is," Terra scoffed.

"Just because we have powers doesn't mean we can't...have relationships..." Gar replied. "Don'cha think?"

"I can attest to THAT!" Lionel agreed.

Cherry looked over to the people who were eating soup as she looked almost sick to her stomach.

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with having a life, right?" Gar continued. 

One woman seemed to look back at the girls, though mostly Terra. Terra clenched her eyes shut, as if experiencing a memory of a rough time in her life.

"What's the matter?" asked Gar. 

After some hesitation, Terra blinked a couple times. "....Nothing. This is lame; I'm out." she said as she turned and headed out the door, as Gar watched her go.

"I wonder what all that was about?" Riley asked.

"Something personal, I'm sure." Cherry replied.

"She looked like she'd just seen a ghost." Lionel commented.

Cherry then rubbed her arm silently about the poor people who needed to come in for charity.

"Still... It sucks that everyone here's so down on their luck," Lionel continued, changing the topic. "I figure we should do something nice for them. Question is, what?"

"I'd say sing, but... I can't do that." Cherry said bashfully.

"I can... Though I'd be happy to help." Lionel replied.

"Well... I have an interesting taste in songs..." Cherry looked away.

"Okay. Whaddyou got?" Lionel asked.

"I... I can't..." Cherry shook her head with a small bashful smile. "Forget I said anything."

"Alright, if ya say so," Lionel replied with a warm smirk. "Howsabout we go get some lunch?"

"Well... I guess I could eat..." Cherry said. "Uh... Are we by any chance going to McDonald's?"

"Eh, I was thinking Wendy's." Lionel replied.

"Oh, okay, luckily I love both, I always love me a Junior Bacon Cheeseburger." Cherry nearly drooled.

"Good on ya," Lionel replied as they headed out. "Personally, I enjoy the triple-cheeseburger. In fact...I heard they have a QUADRUPLE."

"Guhh... I've never felt so hungry in all my life... I feel like the last time I ate was at my birthday party." Cherry said.

"Well, we might as well go and sate our hungers." Lionel replied.

Cherry soon held her stomach as she could feel it growling right about now as they walked off from the soup kitchen.

Eventually, they finished their lunch, and headed back to the tower.

"Much... Better..." Cherry said, now full.

"Agreed!" Lionel nodded, until they noticed the Tower shaking.

"Wah!" Cherry yelped at the shaking before falling over to the side to keep her balance. "What the heck was that?!"

"Dunno, but I doubt it's anything GOOD!" Lionel replied, poofing them into the tower, and they race towards the source of the quaking. 

Turns out it's Terra, who's subconsciously generating the quakes in her sleep.

"TERRA!" Cherry called out.

"She's going to bring the building down!" Damian told the others.

"I can help." Raven said as she came towards the blonde girl, putting her hands to her head with her eyes glowing purple. 

Terra gasped as she woke up before glaring. "What're you doing?" She then shoved the half-demon teen. "Get off me!" 

"Yeah, well, you're welcome, Blondie!" Cherry glared back from that.

"No shit! Your sleep-quakes almost turned our home into a pile of rubble!" Lionel added. "Or maybe you'd PREFER dying in your sleep from being crushed by 20,000 tons of gravel, mortar, and other assorted materials!"

"We came to check on you." Kori told Terra.

"Are you all right?" Dick added.

"It was a freakin' nightmare..." Terra muttered. "Just leave me alone, so... Get going. You heard me! Get going!"

"Hold on, I have a math problem," Cherry glared, raising her fist. "What does your face plus my fist equal?"

"Cherry, no." Atticus told her.

"No, Atticus, Raven tried to help because this little Night-Terra almost got us all flattened into super-pancakes!" Lionel replied. "And yet she has the cojones to act all arrogant over it!"

"Violence doesn't solve anything..." Atticus sighed. "Cherry's parents taught me that."

Lionel sighed. "Once again, fair enough... It isn't worth the trouble." he relented.

"Do you have to be right about everything?" Cherry complained to her best friend.

"Yes!" Atticus smirked, a bit cockily.

"Don't get cocky. That smug attitude will get you into trouble." Lionel retorted.

"I'm not smug, I'm proud." Atticus replied.

Cherry just rolled her eyes.

"Potato, po-tah-to. It ALL adds up to arrogance." Lionel replied.

Atticus soon walked off to get back to exercising.

"Well, THIS was an ordeal." Lionel sighed. "Whaddya wanna do now?"

"Who? You and me?" Cherry asked him.

"Well.... Sure." Lionel shrugged.

"I was gonna watch some videos on my laptop actually," Cherry shrugged. "I could use a laugh or two."

"Sounds fun." Lionel replied.

"You wanna come?" Cherry offered.

"Alright. Not like I have anything else to do..." Lionel replied, following behind.

Cherry soon took Lionel into her room and went to get her computer to find video clips she had been watching for a while just to keep a good laugh, luckily, it wasn't just black comedy that appeased her, as she put on clips of a show she missed known as Whose Line is it Anyway.

"Alright... Let's see what we're dealing with here..." Lionel thought as he looked closer.

Cherry soon set the computer up and put on the improv comedy series she used to love watching as a child. And Lionel watched with her.

AND SO, THE NEXT DAY...

The Titans were gathered outside in the yard for a training session.

"How are you today, Cherry?" Nightwing asked.

"Meh... I'll be all right..." Lady Gothika told him. "Guess I just have a lot on my mind from Terra."

"Same!" Bat-Mite agreed. "After last night, who KNOWS what she might do?"

"Try not to think about it too much." Nightwing advised.

"...If you say so." Bat-Mite shrugged.

Nightwing soon went to do his part once they were all lined up together.

"To be ready for anything, you must train for everything." Starfire advised.

Terra seemed to have a deadpan look on her face.

"These were the lessons taught to me by the Warlords of Okara." Starfire continued.

"Something tells me this is gonna hurt..." Todd commented.

"And so it shall be instilled in you," Starfire continued. "Those not fighting, watch and learn. Nightwing?"

Nightwing then went to go and join her.

"Shall we dance, good sir?" Starfire smirked.

"But of course, my dear." Nightwing smirked back.

"Thrilling..." Todd commented while playing a handheld video game. 

Yang, however, was more than content getting an eyeful of Starfire's...(in his own words) "cantaloupes".

"Todd, focus, we have a job to do." Riley told her brother.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Todd retorted. "Ungh! Whoo! Hoo-yeah! Almost to the end of the level!"

Riley soon took his video game away from him with a sharp glare.

"Aw, weak!" Todd groused, before glancing over at Yang, who had a vacant look in his eyes and a trail of drool hanging from the edge of his mouth.

"Isn't this amazing, you guys?" Yang asked.

"What is up with you?" Todd complained.

"One, this caters to the fight-monger in me," Yang explained. "And two, as Starfire moves, so do her cantaloupes. Let's just say I'll have PLENTY to think about during my private time, eheheheh..."

"Oh, brother." Sayia Man sighed and rolled his eyes to Yang's behavior. 

"You're telling me." Yin replied.

"Whatever, guys," Yang shrugged. "It's a hormonal impulse that I am happy to shoulder the burden of for the rest of my days."


	5. Chapter 5

Starfire and Nightwing went at it for a while until the man had fallen to the ground and the alien princess had won.

"I guess we know who's taking out the garbage at the new place." Raven smirked to Damian.

"One word: emasculated." Todd snickered.

"That was not a confidence booster!" Nightwing pouted to Starfire after she helped him up.

"You did very well," Starfire smiled. "You lasted far longer this time."

Terra soon snickered which didn't go unnoticed. 

"I meant in training of course," Starfire said. "He's very proficient when we have s--"

"KORI!" Nightwing stopped her. 

Starfire smiled to him before calling out. "Blue Beetle! Raven!"

"Looks like you two are up next," Sayia Man commented. "So hey, go hard, go long, and give her your best!"

Bat-Mite, Todd, and Yang chuckled at this.

"Are they laughing at me?" Sayia Man asked.

"No, no. They're laughing next to you." Lady Gothika replied snarkily.

"Hah! Reference!" Bat-Mite chuckled.

Sayia Man rolled his eyes before they watched Blue Beetle and Raven. And the match began. Raven got her powers ready while Blue Beetle got his machines ready. Raven then began to use her demon powers against Blue Beetle to start out their match.

"Alright, team, place your bets." Bat-Mite announced.

"I'm with Raven all the way." Lady Gothika replied.

"Eh, my bet's on the Beetle." Beast Boy replied.

"Hmm... I'm not one to gamble, but I think I could bet on Beetle too." Sayia Man agreed.

"Blue Beetle." Todd and Yang agreed.

"I'm picking Raven." Riley decided.

"C'mon, Markov, this COULD be a lucrative cash-making opportunity!" Bat-Mite chided.

"Betting is stupid." Terra deadpanned.

Bat-Mite shrugged. "Suit yourself. But it's profitable!" he replied.

"Fine... I'll pick Raven." Terra rolled her eyes.

"Good on ya!" Bat-Mite grinned, settling in to watch the show.

Eventually, the fight concluded, with Blue Beetle taking the win... Though since it was mostly the Scarab's doing, Bat-Mite just decided to call it a tie.

"Hmph." Lady Gothika gave a small pout.

Bat-Mite shrugged. "Ah, well. Next up, Terra and Beast Boy."

"This should be interesting." Riley commented about the two in question.

"Yeah.... She might just throw off the kid gloves and try to smash him into a paste..." Todd commented.

"I can see that happenin'." Yang agreed.

"I bet she takes her time with it, just so she can drag out his beatdown." Bat-Mite added.

They soon began to watch Beast Boy against Terra.

"This would make a battle blitz of a video game." Lady Gothika commented about the Teen Titans fighting each other like in Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter.

"Yeah, call it DC Comics Free-for-All Smackdown! Or DC Universe VS. Mortal Kombat, or the Injustice games...both of which exist," Bat-Mite commented. "But if I WAS in any of them, I figure I'd hafta be scaled back power-wise."

"I dunno what I could do if I were in a fighting game." Lady Gothika shrugged.

Beast Boy soon turned into a cheetah and ran towards Terra. Terra then moved the ground from under his paws and he soon changed into a monkey before pouncing on her as a bear.

"Bet you'd have one seriously kickin' special move," Bat-Mite replied. "Kinda reminds me of that Justice League Action episode where the team got captured by Toyman Hiro Okamura, and were forced to fight each other while he used gaming controllers to manipulate their movements!"

"Hmm... I guess..." Lady Gothika shrugged. "I'd like to have a killer combo or something amazing like Luna."

"With me, it'd probably look like something pulled from Animaniacs or Tiny Toons..." Bat-Mite continued. "Heck, I'd probably even have Taz's tornado spin!"

"That sounds right for you." Lady Gothika replied.

Terra climbed up another flight while Beast Boy chased her as a monkey and she soon jumped on another levitating ground platform made from the earth. Beast Boy nearly crashed with the ground piece, but turned into a bird to have a safer landing. Terra then smirked as she lifted more and more pieces as Beast Boy flew away to avoid them.

"Looks like she's got him on the ropes!" Todd commented. "This could be it, people!"

Beast Boy soon turned into a snake and wrapped himself around Terra.

"I knew he couldn't keep his hands off of her." Lady Gothika smirked.

"He's got this all WRAPPED up!" Bat-Mite added.

"Ah, mon cherie, let Gar give you a big hug~" Beast Boy cooed to Terra in a French accent. "Mm... So soft... I'll let you go for a little kees?~"

"Someone's been watching too many Pepe Le Pew cartoons..." Bat-Mite commented.

Lady Gothika let out a small gagging noise over Beast Boy's behavior.

Terra grunted and seemed to be having bad memories flash through her mind as Beast Boy squeezed her. "WHO YOU CALLIN' A WITCH?!" she then glared and a tornado seemed to come out.

Beast Boy changed back into a human and yelped as he spun around before getting thrown on the ground, far from Terra. 

"Terra!" Starfire gasped.

"She's flipped!!" Bat-Mite yelped.

Terra then rose spikes out of the ground right for Beast Boy.

"She's going to kill him!" Damian gasped.

Nightwing soon ran to Beast Boy.

"Terra! Stop!" Sayia Man called out, destroying the blasts on impact with a Kai Blast. 

Terra glared as her anger took over her powers and Nightwing soon took Beast Boy off of the ground as fast as he could.

"Looks like she's not in a listening mood!" Bat-Mite glowered. "We gotta stop her before she kills somebody! KAI-O-KEN!!" His body lit up with a bright red flame aura, and he sped towards Terra, slamming her in the chest. 'Hopefully I can knock her unconscious... Or at least incapacitate her long enough for the others to get her to chill out...!' Bat-Mite thought. "Alright, guys... If you've got some plan to calm her down.... Now would be the time!" Bat-Mite urged.

Starfire quickly launched a starbolt, knocking Terra off her feet as Bat-Mite leaped aside. Damian ran over and shook Terra awake. "Terra! Control yourself!" he yelled.

"What? What's going on?" Terra asked, not realizing what had happened.

Nightwing carried over a limping Beast Boy.

Terra looked on in horror. "I'm sorry...it's not my fault..." she protested. 

"Let me calm your mind." Raven urged, reaching out towards her, but Terra stopped her. "No! Don't touch me!" she yelled.

"It's okay, Terra; we understand." Starfire said, as Bat-Mite shook his head in disbelief.

"What I understand is that she went zero-to-psycho in no time flat!" Bat-Mite protested. "And all because Beast Boy provoked her a little bit! Suppose durin' a battle with the baddies, one of 'em gets cocky and starts makin' cracks at her? ZORCH! He might get splattered all over the pavement! Face it, guys, she's a tickin' time-bomb! We can't risk it!"

"And people say I have issues." Lady Gothika commented.

Beast Boy coughed. "It's cool... I provoked you." he replied.

Terra looked on, as though he'd grown two heads. "What's WRONG with you...?" she asked, before running away.

Bat-Mite snorted. "Look who's talking..."

"What's wrong with us? What's wrong with you?" Lady Gothika replied before she linked her fingers together and wore a random pair of headphones with a microphone. "Why don't we talk about it? ...I'm listening."

"Hehehe... I doubt she's in a therapy mood." Bat-Mite commented.

"Let's chat." Lady Gothika smirked.

"Just leave me alone, including you two from the peanut gallery." Terra scoffed at her and Bat-Mite.

"Yeah, whatever," Bat-Mite snorted. "And by the way, I'll be KEEPING your bet winnings!"

Lady Gothika then jumped over the desk as it disappeared off-screen as Terra looked angry and upset.

"I'm sure she'll be okay by morning." Sayia Man suggested.

"Riiiight... Keep telling yourself that, hombré," Bat-Mite scoffed. "Meanwhile, I gotta lotta money now, and damn if I don't intend to spend it!"

Terra soon stormed off.

"I guess we're done training now." Sayia Man commented.

"And the grass is GREEN! And your hair turns YELLOW! And the sky is BLUE!" Lady Gothika replied in a rather snippy tone.

"Thanks for the observations!" Bat-Mite replied. "Let's go do something else."

Sayia Man sighed and rolled his eyes, but agreed with them as they went back to the Titans Tower.

Cherry looked bored and soon took out a DVD that was given to her from her parents which was the Mortal Kombat cartoon series from 1996: Defenders of the Realm.

"Defenders of the Realm? Sounds kinda cool..." Bat-Mite commented.

"I never knew Mortal Kombat had its own cartoon..." Cherry said. "13 episodes... I guess I can kinda see why."

"Yeah... It does look kinda ridiculous..." Bat-Mite commented. "Saw a review on the show posted by this guy called Phelous..."

"It's the thought that counts..." Cherry said as she popped in the DVD, taking out last year's gift which was the movie known as Penn & Teller Get Killed.

"Alright... Let's watch a crappy cartoon!" Bat-Mite sighed, settling in.

"Just out of curiosity..." Cherry said to him as she set it up and went to go sit next to him.

"Either way, it works." Bat-Mite shrugged.

They soon sat down in front of the screen to watch the cartoon.

"I guess we owe Doug Walker and James Rolfe five bucks for sitting through this?" Cherry muttered.

"Eh, frag that. They get nothing. NOTHING!!!" Bat-Mite snapped.

Cherry laughed to what Bat-Mite said as they watched the cartoon.

Meanwhile, Damian had entered the Control Room to talk with Nightwing.

"I know what you're gonna tell me... Terra needs more training..." Nightwing sighed.

"No, it's something else." Damian replied.

"It's very important." Atticus added as he walked in with Starfire and Raven.

"Since I last scanned her, I sensed something off about her..." Raven explained.

"She needs to be watched, Grayson." Damian added.

"LIKE A CYBERHAWK!!" Bat-Mite yelled from the room.

"Cherry, your boyfriend is eavesdropping!" Atticus complained.

"Not that hard since I can hear you very clearly!" Bat-Mite called back.

Atticus rolled his eyes with a sigh.

"You all were saying?" Nightwing then asked the others.

"Since we talked, I have sensed something off about Terra." Raven replied.

"She needs to be watched, Grayson." Damian demanded.

"She needs understanding, not surveillance," Nightwing replied as he got off his seat and approached them. "Sure, she has her rough edges, but Kori thinks she's worth it, and I agree."

"Making decisions with your heart will get people killed." Damian glowered, and he left.

After a few moments, Raven soon joined him. Starfire looked to Nightwing and he just narrowed his eyes.

"Somebody oughta go after 'em; make sure they don't get in over their heads..." Bat-Mite called. "But it's not like we're volunteering or nothin'."

"Thanks for your help." Atticus smirked.

"WHAT?!" Cherry glared.

"Double-WHAT?!" Bat-Mite added.

"Well, you two have fun!" Yang waved. "I'll be enjoying my private time, and please knock before entering."

Cherry and Bat-Mite glared to both Yang and Atticus.

"Hey, don't get mad at me, it wasn't my idea!" Yang reminded them.

"Yeah... It was HIS idea!!" Bat-Mite glowered at Atticus, popping his knuckles.

"I'll see you guys later then." Atticus said as he went to do some of his work-outs before he would go to sleep.

Bat-Mite snorted. "Know-it-all jerk... Maybe we can catch up with Damian before the inevitable fight he's gotten himself into concludes..."

"I'll be back a sec." Cherry said as she needed a strawberry pop.

"Alright..." Bat-Mite decided, reading a comic book.

Cherry soon opened her mini fridge and took out a can of strawberry soda, putting a straw in it before sipping and smiling in relief.

Bat-Mite glanced at her with a warm smile. "Alright... Let's get moving." he sighed.


	6. Chapter 6

Eventually, the trio arrived at where Bat-Mite had sensed Damian's energy.

"Dammit! I knew we should've come earlier!" Bat-Mite groused. "The fight's over!"

"Hey, don't blame me!" Yang protested. "I'm NOT gonna teleport to a fight and NOT bring my fight jams!" He started listening to "Stand Out" by Tevin Campbell on his phone.

Cherry rolled her eyes to Yang in slight annoyance. Suddenly, they saw Terra, wearing a hoodie and walking away from the side of a warehouse.

"Hey, there's Terra," Bat-Mite pointed out. "Maybe she spotted Damian around here."

"I don't know if we should approach her or not." Cherry said.

"Eh, you're right," Bat-Mite replied. "Maybe when she's in a better mood..."

"A girl in a bad mood is usually not the best thing to hassle." Cherry advised, as she would know as a girl herself.

Bat-Mite pondered. "That sounds reasonable. We should probably go." he replied.

Bat-Mite turned and followed her glance to the roof. "Waitaminute... Who's that on the rooftop? Cuz it sure ain't a fiddler!" he whispered.

"Heh... I think I'd rather have William Shatner up there than anyone else." Cherry nearly scoffed.

"Ooh, good one!" Bat-Mite commented. "Plus I get the reference..."

Terra soon walked off and the person on the roof began to follow her.

"Man, too bad Atticus isn't here," Cherry said. "He could take a look with that telescope vision thingy."

"Well, he's NOT here," Bat-Mite sighed. "We'll hafta pursue them on foot... But we need to make sure they can't see us."

Cherry soon bowed her head and a dark shadow engulfed her briefly and she wore a cloak over her head to darken herself and make herself seem invisible within the darkness and did the same with Bat-Mite to blend in.

"Niiiice..." Bat-Mite whispered. "Now let's pursue!"

"Right." Cherry replied as they trekked through the darkness together.

The duo followed after Terra and her unknown pursuant, until....

Terra soon came between them in deadpan. "It's not like I can't sense the vibrations of someone following me..."

"Heh..." Cherry replied nervously.

Bat-Mite sighed. "Alright, fine, ya got us. We were wondering if you'd seen Damian. This was the last place I sensed his energy..." he explained.

Terra pointed right to them. Damian was shown to be the one on the roof all along.

"Ah... So that's where he was!" Yang commented after finally removing his earbuds.

"I know what it's like to not fit in with the group," Damian said to Terra. "What's wrong?"

"Aside from Monkey Boy making me meltdown, or Raven staring all the time, Nightwing acting like a den mother, Jaime and his freak-o bug, Miss Smiles-A-Lot, those freaks who crawled out from the depths of the world--" Terra glared slightly.

"HEY!" Cherry glared.

"Watch who ya call a freak," Bat-Mite snapped. "Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones, so to speak."

"Hmph, I guess nothing's bothering me then." Terra rolled her eyes.

"If you need to talk, let us help you." Damian told her.

"Whatever, bud. She can help herself... But there are some who aren't worth the trouble." Bat-Mite snapped. "We're outta here!" And with a twitch of his nose, the trio vanished.

"That teleportation stuff always takes some getting used to." Cherry commented once they were back home.

"Give it time..." Bat-Mite replied. "That Terra is nothing but trouble!"

"Ward, I'm worried about the earth-bender." Cherry said in a 1950's housewife accent for a cheap joke.

"I know, hon; if we can't curb her awful behavior... Well, I dunno just WHAT we could do!" Bat-Mite replied, playing along.

"Let's throw the book at her." Cherry smirked as she took out a dictionary that was quite thick.

"A brilliant notion!" Bat-Mite replied.

Atticus soon walked by.

"Don't get involved." Cherry told him.

"Yeah, you already did once, and THAT was a huge flop." Bat-Mite added.

"Can I help it if I wanna help my friends?" Atticus replied.

"Nah. Terra is a LOT of things, but not a friend." Bat-Mite replied.

"I guess you have a point there, but we shouldn't hurt her," Atticus replied. "I mean, she's not allied with Brother Blood or Slade or anyone like that for one thing."

"Probably... But she acts so irritable and angry all the time, one probably wouldn't know it."

"Maybe I should do some research..." Atticus replied, a bit mysteriously. "I am a detective after all."

"You do that," Yang shrugged. "I'm going to bed." He headed off to his room.

"Night, Yang..." Atticus said as he took out his own laptop. "Uh... Cherry?"

"Titans_Forever." Cherry replied.

"Thanks." Atticus said as he soon put in the WiFi password to go online.

"Good luck with that," Bat-Mite replied. "Figure I'll go to bed now too... Unless anyone has any other ideas."

"Eh, I'm gonna get some sleep myself with some music." Cherry said as she went to her room.'

"Night, guys." Atticus told them as he decided to stay up a bit longer.

"Night, crew." Bat-Mite shrugged as he poofed into his room and went to sleep.

AND SO, THE NEXT DAY....

Jaime was volunteering in the soup kitchen, and the others were helping Nightwing and Starfire move their stuff to their new apartment... And thanks to teleportation, transport was handled quickly.

"I feel like we're doing a great thing." Yin smiled.

"Same here!" Riley agreed. "Sometimes the smallest help is the best kind."

"You sure said it." Yin agreed.

"Maybe you two should move in with each other." Todd said to his sister and the female pink bunny.

"Yeah, you're practically made for one another!" Yang added with a snicker.

Yin and Riley glared at their brothers in annoyance as they laughed immaturely. And they both slapped hi-fives.

"Well, that's the last box sent," Yang sighed, dusting his palms off. "Now whaddo we do?"

Todd thought for a few minutes. "Let's get some lunch; I saw this great place the other day." he responded.

"It's not a burrito place, is it?" Cherry asked the redheaded boy.

"Course not... Being super-fast in the feet does NOT apply to my farts..." Todd replied, getting a faraway glance as if remembering a horrible incident.

Cherry just stuck her tongue out as she didn't need to know that.

"Regardless, let's GO!!" Todd continued, awakening from his flashback. Bat-Mite nodded, and in a flash, they vanished.

When they reappeared outside the café in San Francisco, they were all in their civilian clothes. So they went to sit at a few tables... Only to discover that sitting nearby were Captain Hero, Spanky Ham, Wooldoor Sockbat, Princess Clara, Foxxy Love, Xandir, Toot Braunstein, and Ling-Ling the Battle Monster. Next to them was a short kid named Eddy, wearing a bowling shirt and blue pants.

"And here I was worried WE'D be the weirdest looking patrons..." Bat-Mite commented to his friends.

"Uh... No comment..." Cherry blinked among the strange characters.

"On the bright side, compared to them, we seem normal!" Riley added.

"But why are they here...?" Cherry asked about the Drawn Together gang. 

"Aww... Are your wannabe Pooh's Adventures series crossovers not allowed to associate with adult cartoons?" Yang smirked.

"Did you just compare me to Pooh's Adventures?" Cherry narrowed her eyes in both anger and disgust.

"Yang, do NOT go starting trouble," Yin advised. "The last six times you did THAT, it almost got us killed! For once, use your brain instead of your mouth!"

"Well, she's the one who has rip-off stories anyway!" Yang huffed. "Why do people even like her? She's not even original!"

"Yang, shut up!" Bat-Mite ordered. "Or else I'll erase your mouth... And I WILL DO IT!!"

Yang grumbled slightly.

"Wow..." Cherry commented about the defense. "Thanks, I suppose."

"You're quite welcome," Bat-Mite replied. "Anyone who insults you will have to deal with ME."

"Though, I'm just curious why the Drawn Together gang is here..." Cherry commented. "Not that I'm complaining, I actually like that show, but still..."

"Maybe someone likes putting in cameos?" asked Todd. "And they probably get a few lines each..."

"Well, what much could be said for a coward, a filth-monger, an idiot, a bigoted, bitchy racist, that one likable character, that other likable-but-kinda-whiny character, a glutton, and an unintelligible creature?" asked Bat-Mite.

The group soon turned over as they sensed they were being talked about.

"Hello~..." Cherry smirked. "I never thought I'd meet you guys in a crossover."

"Likewise," Bat-Mite added. "But I suppose it's always the ones you least expect..."

"Anyway..." Cherry soon looked back. "I could go for a burger with some fries, and... Maybe root beer or creme soda... I'm not sure which yet." 

"You sure you don't want honey?" Yang smirked.

Cherry soon tackled him, making him yelp, and she began to fight him in a fight cloud.

Spanky laughed and laughed. "Fight! Fight! Fight! Place your bets, people: the angry girl or the loudmouth Bugs Bunny wannabe!" he announced.

"I know what to do, I'll ask Jesus for the solution." Princess Clara smiled before she began to pray like the religious nut she was.

"Aw, cram it in your ear already!" Eddy groused, making the cuckoo sign. "If life's taught me one thing, it's that ya can't rely on the Big Man for squadoo! You want a miracle? Then you gotta make it happen under YOUR own power. Besides, my cash is on the girl."

"You're so on, Shorty!" Captain Hero smirked to Eddy.

"Challenge accepted, Captain Zero!" Eddy retorted.

"Should we do something?" Xandir asked. "I feel like we should do something."

Toot soon hit him with a chair for no reason before giggling bashfully. "Toot~"

"You... Are a very troubled individual." commented Bat-Mite.

"I really am!" Toot told him before crying and hitting her head on the table while bawling. "Doesn't anyone like me?!"

"I do." Cherry replied while pulling one of Yang's ears while having her foot in his face while he had grabbed her hair.

Bat-Mite shrugged. "As far as most toon characters go, I suppose you're alright... At least better off than Ren Höek." he replied.

"Aww... You're both sweet..." Toot cooed. "I could just eat you up."

"RUN FOR IT!" Yang panicked about that sentiment.

But Bat-mite just tasered her. "NO! No cannibalism," he growled. "You eat me, I'll go nova-mode, and take you with me."

"Sheesh! It was just an expression!" Toot said. 

Cherry and Yang soon got off of each other to sit down.

"Burger. Creme soda. Now." Cherry uttered out as she felt annoyed and hungry now.

"I'll have what she's having." Bat-Mite added.

"An' a salad fer the lady." Eddy smirked, pointing at Toot.

"Don't make me fight you next, Pipsqueak!" Toot threatened, shaking her fists.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Eddy replied. "It was just a joke. I wasn't really gonna do it."

Toot just huffed and pouted, crossing her arms. Cherry rolled her eyes, but she sat with her friends, waiting for something to eat as she almost looked more sickly than usual.

"...Are you alright?" asked Bat-Mite. "You're not lookin' so good..."

"I haven't felt like myself lately... I think I'm just hungry..." Cherry said to him, a little weakly.

"Well, hopefully your condition improves," Bat-Mite nodded. "For your sake and mine."

"Mm-hmm." Cherry replied. 

Ling-Ling hit Eddy.

"Ow! What the heck, man?!" Eddy glared as he had a cut now.

Cherry's eyes slowly widened once she saw blood dripping from his arm.

"Geez.... Now I need a bandage. Or at least a napkin!" Eddy groused.

Cherry soon stood up and walked towards Eddy.

"Bat-Mite, your lady is loose." Todd said to the imp.

"Hoo boy..." Bat-Mite sighed. "This probably won't end well."

"Yo, waiter! Can a guy get a napkin? Maybe a paper towel?" Eddy asked.

Cherry soon pounced Eddy next.

"What is with you?!" Eddy cried out.

"Back! Back away!" Princess Clara told Cherry. "The fried chicken and watermelon slices are over there!"

"SHUT UP, YOU RACIST BROAD!!!" Bat-Mite roared, turning into his monster mode.

"She's biting me!" Eddy cried out as Cherry seemed to suck his blood. "Make her stop!"

"Relax, dude," Bat-Mite growled. "I'll replace it shortly and keep her preoccupied with MY own blood."

"She's gonna suck the life out of me worse than daytime television!" Eddy cried out.

"Chill OUT!" Bat-Mite replied, before snapping his fingers and replacing Eddy's lost blood. "Oy! I got blood aplenty! LOOK!" He shouted before making a bloody cut in his arm.

Cherry soon turned to him and tackled him next.

"Is it a tackle or a glomp?" Yang smirked since Cherry and Bat-Mite were a couple now.

"Either way works," Todd shrugged.

"It stings!.... And I love it!" Bat-Mite commented.

"So sorry to interrupt yer touchin' moment..." snickered a voice with a Scottish accent. "But we're in the mood fer some eats!"

At the front of the restaurant, there stood a gray girl with pink horn-shaped hair and dark blue clothing, a short kid with goggles and a green jumpsuit, a bulky guy with a black and yellow suit, and a blonde girl in pink clothing.

"They call us the Ferocious Four, and we're here for food!" the kid smirked. "The handle's Gizmo, an this is my crew!"

"Ah, the H.I.V.E. Squad, my guilty pleasure from the Teen Titans series in 2003." Cherry muttered slightly, wiping her mouth after she looked more awake and healthy.

"Only apparently, they're working with Kitten..." Bat-Mite commented. "At best, in this universe they're neutral. They're like our allies from time-to-time."

"Kitten!" Todd and Yang smirked to Cherry at that name.

Cherry soon pounded them both in the heads with a glare about them teasing her about that nickname. Yin and Riley couldn't help but snicker to that.

"So, are you guys here for business or pleasure?" Cherry soon asked Gizmo.

"Like he said, we're just here for chow, comprendé?" Mammoth replied.

"All right." Cherry said before walking off to leave them alone.

Eventually, the team left and headed back to the tower.


	7. Chapter 7

Later, Terra freaked out and almost attacked them...When they were throwing her a "Happy one-year Anniversary of being a Titan" party in the main room.

"Geez le-fleas! If ya don't like parties, ya could've SAID so!" Bat-Mite commented. "No need to go psycho Toph on us!"

"Gee... You guys scared me..." Terra muttered as she tried to calm down.

"We can see that." Kori replied.

"Are these for me?" Terra asked as she stepped forward.

"They sure are!" Gar smiled. "For your one-year anniversary as part of the Titans! It was all Raven's idea."

Terra sniffed. "Nobody's ever done anything like this for me..." she explained. "Thank you...."

"Hey..." Beast Boy put an arm around her shoulder. "Dry those tears, mama, and let's get this party started!"

"Yeah, what HE said!" Todd added.

"Montage time!" Cherry said, seemingly to no one.

"Heck YEAH!" Bat-Mite cheered as the montage began.

Terra and Gar soon shared a picture together. There was then a group picture of everyone altogether. Gar then turned into a monkey, and took a silly face picture while Jaime bit into his cake, but that made Terra laugh. Cherry and Raven glanced over as they were suddenly caught in the spotlight of the camera. And Bat-Mite and Todd proceeded to make goofy faces at the camera. They even did some dancing, everyone seemed to have a very good time today, and the party overall was a success.

"Great party." Atticus smiled as he laid down on the couch.

"Yeah.... But still, that lousy racist broad from the café REALLY pissed me off..." Bat-Mite groused. "Eh, I'll just terrorize her in her dreams, Freddy style."

"Fazbear or Kreuger?" Cherry couldn't help but smirk.

"Kreuger, duh! Can NOT go wrong with ol' Robert Englund." Bat-Mite smirked, producing a claw-fingered glove on his left hand.

"Sorry, I couldn't help it," Cherry chuckled. "You want some help getting into her dreams?"

"Sure. Wanna come along? It'll be fu~un! Like a.... Revenge date!" Bat-Mite grinned.

"If anyone can walk into one's dreams, it's Cherry," Atticus replied. "...And Princess Luna."

"And apparently Jake Long in that one episode of American Dragon." Cherry then added.

"I should probably watch that episode..." Bat-Mite pondered. "Nevertheless... Revenge date it IS!'

"All right, just follow my lead." Cherry said before taking out what looked like a spell book.

"Oh-kay!" Bat-Mite replied, following behind.

"Hey," Atticus told Bat-Mite. "Be good to Cherry now, or I'll come after you." he then warned like a big brother.

"I promise," Bat-Mite nodded, giving a salute. "I always look out for those I care about."

"All right, just wanna make sure," Atticus said. "She's like a sister to me."

"I understand..." Bat-Mite replied, as Cherry began the spell.

"Altum somnum." Cherry told Bat-Mite.

Bat-Mite's eyes widened and he drifted off suddenly. Cherry then came towards Bat-Mite and then used a spell on herself.

Suddenly, the two were shown to be in a long hallway with several doors on both sides like they were awake.

"So... This is the Dream Zone?" Bat-Mite asked.

"Pretty much, yeah," Cherry replied. "This is also part of my special abilities with imagination and manipulating reality. It's kind of like my own version of magic like how Atticus is a Wiccan."

"Interesting..." Bat-Mite commented. "Now... Time to bring on the FEAR!!"

"Shouldn't be too hard to find that wannabe Disney princess's door." Cherry said as she led him down the hallway.

"Ah, yes... Let's go and.... Ring the doorbell..." Bat-Mite chuckled darkly.

Cherry had a small eye roll with a smirk, she soon came up to the door and opened it. "All right, in here." she then told him.

"Alright then. Time to terrify!" Bat-Mite laughed evilly as they entered.

"Don't scare her to death, otherwise she'll end up like Kenny." Cherry hid a small chuckle.

"Would that REALLY be so bad?" Bat-Mite shrugged. "Now we need to find a way to ruin her dream..."

"Hmm..." Cherry paused a moment.

They soon came to see Princess Clara's dream which was her in a peaceful meadow like the older Disney Princesses before the 80's as she happily sang to all of them and she looked as happy as happy could be which made Cherry feel queasy.

"This dream tastes like diabetes." Cherry gagged.

Bat-Mite groaned. "This place is so sweet it's giving me cavities. Well, then... Let's make things SOUR!!"

"I'll help~..." Cherry smirked as she soon touched a tree to make the theme dark and gloomy to match her likes.

Princess Clara laughed and danced around at first, but the peaceful meadow seemed to change into a creepy and ugly forest like in the forest chase scene in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Bat-Mite chuckled evilly. "It begins..."

"What's going on here?" Princess Clara frowned. "This isn't my peaceful meadow. Foxxy must've put an Ancient African spell on me or something."

Bat-Mite stalked through the forest, scraping his claws on the trees. "You really ARE stupid, aren't you?" his voice echoed.

"Who's there?" Princess Clara cried out.

Cherry went behind a tree to watch Bat-Mite first.

Then, as if out of nowhere, Bat-Mite appeared, looking innocent. "Wh... What is this? Where am I?" he asked, playing up the "scared child" act.

"Where did you come from?" Princess Clara asked him.

"I dunno... I just woke up here... But I'm sooo scared!!" he whimpered, cowering.

Cherry cupped her mouth with a slight snicker between the interaction.

"Please, I don't know what to do! Muh-my mommy...she died, and I'm all alone...!" Bat-Mite sobbed.

"Oh... I lost my mommy too..." Princess Clara said.

"What Disney princess hasn't?" Cherry whispered to herself.

"But I'm scared! I need guidance! Preferably from someone who randomly sings to animals to summon them somehow..." Bat-Mite continued.

"I always sing to animals, especially with my Bully song." Princess Clara replied.

"And I'm sure that must be FASCINATING..." Bat-Mite snorted.

"Oh, it is," Princess Clara smiled. "Would you like to hear it?"

"Nah." Bat-Mite replied. "But... Why do you hate black people?"

"What?!" Princess Clara asked.

"Well, yeah... Apparently you treat them like dirt. Why?" Bat-Mite asked.

"Well, that's just how I am," Princess Clara replied. "My father told me that black people are meant to be our servants. I mean, when I first met Foxxy, I thought for sure that she had to be the housemaid."

"But that's BAD. It isn't NICE to treat people so rudely," Bat-Mite chided, his tone becoming a bit irritated. "You gotta treat people NICE.... Or else they won't like you... And if you're not NICE to people.... Then BAD things happen...!"

"I am nice to people, I go to church, you know." Princess Clara defended.

"Yeah, but you STILL treat people like filth!" Bat-Mite continued, growing angrier. "You only go to church because you're trying to feel better about yourself just so you don't feel guilty about the bad things you did!!!"

"What are you saying, religion is a sham?" Princess Clara replied. "I think there's a special place in Hell for people who think like that."

"I'm saying that just because you go to church DOESN'T MAKE YOU A GOOD PERSON!" Bat-Mite growled. "You can pray all you like, but it won't change the fact that you're racist, and you can go to Hell for THAT!!"

"I never liked church much myself." Cherry muttered in the background.

"Besides, why would I wanna spend two hours every Sunday hearing about how I'm going to Hell unless I basically stop doing everything?" Bat-Mite continued. "According to the Bible, we're apparently not even allowed to go to the bathroom. Something that we need to do in order to LIVE."

"Why are you tormenting me when I'm just trying to live my own life?" Princess Clara pouted.

"Because your life is PATHETIC." Bat-Mite explained, as Clara saw mutilated animals lying on the ground, and Cherry appeared, dressed like a genderswapped Freddy Krueger, grinning evilly.

"Oh, looks like I get my time to shine." Cherry said to Bat-Mite.

"What have you done to my animal friends?!" Princess Clara cried out. "This is worse than what my step-mother would do!"

"You thought you could run away to Dreamland to escape your fears," Bat-Mite chuckled darkly. "But you didn't realize that fear exists in the one place that you can NEVER ESCAPE!!!"

"And... YOU'RE PUNISHED!" Cherry added with a wicked smirk, followed by laughter as lightning flashed and thunder boomed right behind them.

"Oh-ho-ho-yes!" Bat-Mite grinned, taking his monster form and grinning giddily. "This is gonna be FUN!!!"

Princess Clara soon screamed out of terror and began to run while grabbing her brunette hair, but the dangerous duo just extended their arms to block her from escaping.

"Looks like you're FENCED in!" Bat-Mite smirked.

And then the both of them lunged like a pair of tigers!! Princess Clara screamed bloody murder as this was truly an impact of a nightmare.

A few minutes later, the duo left the Dream World, laughing.

"That was really something!" Cherry said to Bat-Mite between laughs like it was the most fun she had in years. "The dead animals and the creepy forest was a brilliant idea!"

"I KNOW, right?" Bat-Mite replied. "That broad's gonna be wetting herself for the rest of her LIFE!!!"

Cherry soon went to lead him out so that they could go back into the waking world.

In the waking world, their bodies regained consciousness. 

"Well, THAT was certainly a good time!" Bat-Mite yawned, stretching.

Cherry rubbed her eyes once she came back to. "It's a living..." she then muttered. "Boy, I feel like a Flintstones character for saying that."

"Eh, ya get used to that." Bat-Mite shrugged.

"Oh, don't I know it?" Cherry replied. "I usually see a married couple in Atticus's dreams. I think they might be his parents."

"Cool!" Bat-Mite nodded. "Talk about prophetic!"

They left the room, and soon learned that the other Titans had left on a mission to find and capture a H.I.V.E scientist to get the secret data he'd worked on.

"Oh, they left without us... Maybe we should catch up?" Cherry wondered.

Bat-Mite thought for a few minutes. "Nah, they're probably alright. But just to be sure, we might as well monitor the mission from here." He proceeds to zap the TV with dimensional energy, causing it to spark, sputter.... And then turn on, displaying the mission with incredible picture quality.

"Well... All right..." Cherry replied. "These adventures tend to take a lot out of me. I just hope no one gets hurt... Or worse..." she then said, showing a rare soft spot.

"Same," Bat-Mite nodded, as they sat down on the couch. Apparently in the footage they were watching, the Titans had finished the fight and managed to subdue the scientist. "But wait.... Where's Damian? He'd never turn down a chance to kick some ro-butts..."

"Unless... He's getting HIS ass handed to him..." Cherry replied mysteriously.

"Hm... I don't see him anywhere..." Bat-Mite commented. "You don't suppose..."

Cherry narrowed her eyes and they darted back and forth, almost suspiciously.

"... That Terra might've had something to do with it...?" he whispered. He then realized that the onscreen photos looked familiar. "Waitaminute.... That lousy science jerk's been taking PICTURES of all of us! That was from when we went to the carnival for team-bonding!"

"I've been exposed!" Cherry gasped, covering herself suddenly.

"Good thing that creep bit the big one..." Bat-Mite scoffed. "Now he's rotting in Hell."

"Yeah, that's true..." Cherry replied as she settled down then. "Even if I was nearly there sometime last year myself."

"Eh, it was three years, but whatever." Bat-Mite shrugged.

Later, in the kitchen, Gar, Raven, Atticus, Yang, Todd, Yin, Jaime, and Terra were eating the leftover party cake when Nightwing and Starfire entered.

"Everyone, Starfire has an announcement regarding tonight's events." Nightwing explained.

"Oh, good," Atticus smiled. "Hit us with your best shot, Starfire."

"Oh, I do not wish to harm you, Atticus." Starfire frowned.

"You won't..." Atticus muttered slightly, but then smiled again.

"With what we discovered tonight, we all need to be extra vigilant," Starfire replied. "We cannot take any chances."

Gar stood up. "Are you kidding me? It's Kevin Smith!"

"He was Silent Bob in 'Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back'!" Yang added. "Best movie ever... Unlike the Killing Joke adaptation....."

"I didn't say don't do what you have planned, but keep your eyes and Com lines open at all times," Starfire replied. "I'm feeling, whatever Blood is planning, tonight is just a prelude."

Terra looked away from that almost as if she felt some guilt. 

"Don't worry, Starfire, we'll get through this." Atticus promised.

"Yeah!" Yin agreed. "It takes a LOT to get one over on us!"

"I'm so glad to hear that from all of you." Starfire approved.

Terra looked aside, seeming quite conflicted. 

Later, she was on the sand, skipping stones.

"Go talk to her." Atticus suggested to Gar.

Gar mentally braced himself, then went over to Terra...in frog form. "Sorry your party got interrupted..." he apologized.

"That's the way it goes." Terra replied softly.

"Don't let all that talk from earlier shake ya... You know I got your back." Gar replied.

"It's other stuff." Terra replied.

"Like what?" Gar asked, turning into a rabbit. "I'm all ears~"

Terra smiled at that, before Gar turned back into human form.

"You have a pretty smile..." Gar commented.

Terra smiled, but then instantly frowned. "Do you know how I became an orphan?"

"Uh... Your parents died?" Gar asked like it was obvious.

"No," Terra replied. "After I got powers, they freaked. Thought I was possessed or something."

"I'm sorry." Gar shook his head to that as that sounded depressing.

"Don't be... I don't need your pity." Terra retorted, chucking a stone halfway across the ocean.

"It can be a bond, you know?" Gar said to her after a moment. "Everyone on the team's had it rough."

"I can tell Princess Sparkle Thong knows all about eating from a dumpster." Terra huffed.

"Kori is a refugee being stalked by her homicidal sister." Gar clarified.

"Jaime has a family that loves him." Terra countered.

"And because of the bug, odds are he'll never see them face-to-face ever again." Gar replied.

"Cherry and Atticus are like siblings." Terra shrugged.

"That may be, but Atticus doesn't know what happened to his parents," Gar said. "Cherry was often an outsider, but she considers him closer to her than any one else, except for maybe Lionel."

"The little guy? He looks like he hasn't got a worry in the world." Terra scoffed.

"He was exiled from his own home because everyone found him to be annoying," Gar replied. "I think pain is what makes a hero... It's like pressure that either forms a diamond, or grinds you into dust..."

"But what about you, Chuckles?" Terra soon asked. "Aside from an unhealthy online presence, you're normal."

Gar held out his hand and then pointed to himself to emphasize his skin color.

"Yeah, you're green. You wouldn't change it if you could," Terra replied to that. "You like the attention. Besides, it looks okay on you."

Gar soon smiled to that as that seemed to mean a lot to him, and she soon smiled back until the two suddenly leaned together for a kiss with each other. 

"Finally." Atticus whispered to himself.

Gar glanced at her after pulling away. "Wow... You didn't kill me."

"This time," Terra smiled. "Don't get used to it... Jerk..."

Atticus smiled as he secretly watched them. Gar soon cheered out of excitement, turning into a gorilla as he pounded his chest, and then turned into a wolf and howled out of victory as this had to be the happiest day of his young life. He even turned into a bird and happily flew around the skies in excitement. Terra hid a small smile as she watched as Gar celebrated himself.

"WHOA! Looks like Gar's ready to flip, flap & fly!" Lionel commented.

"Don't care if I die~" Cherry sang to that.

"Um.... Okay..." Lionel shrugged, as Terra walked off.


	8. Chapter 8

The next day, Jaime arrived at the soup kitchen, grocery bags in his arms. It seemed to be empty today, at least, so far.

"Yup, I got 'em all in!" Jaime said on the phone as he put 2 trays into the oven.

There was then answer on the phone.

"Hey, I know I'm a noob but I got this," Jaime said on the phone before sitting down. "See you when you get here, Traci."

Meanwhile at Metrocon, Gar and Yang arrived for the Kevin Smith interview. 

"The guest of honor with 1,000,000 followers is... Here?" Gar asked, looking out at the empty room.

"Looks like we showed up early..." Yang commented.

"I guess so..." Gar shrugged as they came into the room as it looked like a ghost town.

So they proceeded to sit down in two of the chairs onstage. While they did, Yang noticed a red button near one of the microphones.

"DO...NOT....PRESS...?" Yang read the sign under the button. "You're not the boss of me, sign!!"

"It couldn't hurt, right?" Gar grinned to Yang.

"Course not!" Yang replied. "What harm could pushing one little button do?

"Go on then." Gar chuckled with a grin.

Yang grinned back and soon went to do just that.

Meanwhile, Starfire was in the apartment cooking, while Richard was out on his motorcycle.

"I think we should look over the files again, this afternoon," Kori suggested. "Make sure we didn't miss anything."

The stove then seemed to flare and she quickly went back to her attention with it.

"Sure thing," Dick replied as he rode by the cars down the street. "And per your orders, I'll check on Jaime and Gar."

Starfire yelped as the stove's contents began to catch fire. "The warlords of Okara didn't teach me anything on cooking..." she commented as she got the fire extinguisher and blasted it at the stove.

Dick took that cue to bring something on the way back. As soon as she hung up, there was a ring at the doorbell. The alien princess looked through the peephole, but saw no one there, and she opened the door to still find no one, and then looked down at the floor to see that there was a present left for her.

Dick, meanwhile, had arrived at the soup kitchen. "I wonder where Cherry, Atticus and Lionel are...?" he said to himself.

There seemed to be a tomboy girl who looked cold and starving with her dog as she stood with the crowd.

"What's going on?" Dick asked Traci. 

"I'm not sure," Traci replied. "It should be open. We got a new guy."

So Dick went around the back, picked the lock and opened the door. The tomboy girl frowned as she shivered with her dog.

"Jaime? Jaime!" Dick called out as he came into the kitchen, but heard the smoke alarm go off as smoke foomed from the stove. He soon opened it up to see that the food had been burnt to beyond a crisp, and it looked like he had some detective work to do.

Elsewhere, Cherry, Lionel, and Atticus (as well as Todd, Yin, and Riley) knew they had to help Dick, so they proceeded to regroup with him at the next location. The tomboy girl looked over.

"Don't worry, folks, we'll get right to the bottom of th--" Atticus said before looking to the tomboy girl, and blushed a little to her, suddenly stammering.

"It's finally happened," Cherry smirked. "I broke Atticus."

"Whoa, really?" Lionel smirked. "Methinks the jerk in the diaper scored a direct hit with his arrows..."

Cherry waved her hand in front of Atticus as he seemed out of it.

"Um... Don't worry... We'll fix this..." Atticus smiled to the tomboy girl who looked pretty in his eyes. 

"That makes us feel safe..." The tomboy smiled back as she soon picked up her puppy in her arms. "Angel and I are practically on our own these days." 

Cherry soon wet her finger from her mouth and stuck the finger in Atticus's ear.

"EEEYAAUGH!" Atticus yelped and soon glared to Cherry.

"Yo, lover-boy! We gotta job to do! Flirt on your OWN time!" Lionel advised.

"I better get going." Atticus sheepishly told the girl.

"My name's Monique, but please, call me Mo." The tomboy said.

"All right... Uh... Nice meeting you, Mo." Atticus blushed.

"Oh-ho, looks like someone's in LOVE!" Todd snickered.

"Don't be silly." Atticus muttered as he soon went to walk in with the others, though his face was red now.

"Aha! Your face is so red!" Yin giggled.

"When's the wedding, hotshot?" Todd smirked.

"Can we please just focus on the task at hand?" Atticus complained. 

"Atticus is right," Cherry said. "So, since I'm like a sister to you, can I be a bridesmaid?"

Atticus groaned and rolled his sapphire eyes.

"Yeah! And ergo, I call best man!" Lionel added.

Atticus grumbled to himself as he felt annoyed and embarrassed right now.

"Relax, bub," Lionel chided. "We got friends to save, but it don't mean we can't have a little levity in between!"

Atticus rolled his eyes as they began to explore. "There's a H.I.V.E. memento down here." he then told the others as he looked underneath somewhere.

"Really?" asked Riley.

"It has to be." Atticus replied.

"Oh, man, those guys got to him." Cherry groaned slightly.

"No frickin' way..." Todd groused.

"We have to get the others." Dick suggested.

"Right... If THEY haven't been grabbed, too." Lionel replied.

They soon left the scene of the crime and organized a meeting at the Tower.

"Alright, guys...some unknown wacko has captured our friends. But WHO?" Lionel pondered.

"The Night Master!" Yin called out.

"That's your enemy." Cherry reminded her.

"Yeah, and you and Yang defeated him, remember?" asked Todd.

"Oh, yeah..." Yin replied bashfully.

"But WHO? And what about Raven and Terra? We left them here..." Riley added.

"This is very mysterious... I don't think I like it..." Cherry said.

"I smells a rat..." Lionel grumbled. "And I thinks we know who it is..."

"You really think so?" Cherry asked him.

"Course I do! The answer's been hanging in front of our noses all this time!" Lionel replied. "I'm surprised that we didn't see it sooner! The rat is a turncoat, and the two words coming to mind beginning with T are trouble and Terra!!" he concluded. "Think about it: Damian hasn't been seen for two nights!" he then explained.

"Yeah, that's true." Cherry admitted from memory.

"And I'm pretty sure Dick's just been attacked at his apartment..." Atticus added.

"Well... I guess you guys might have a point there." Cherry said to them.

Suddenly, Lionel's eyes widened in shock. "Dick... He's at the pier... His arm is dislocated... He avoided getting shot... But he's otherwise a-okay." he stated.

"Are you having a vision or something...?" Atticus asked Lionel.

"I can sense people's life energies... And their locations... Like a GPS.... But more accurate..." Lionel replied.

"Well, that's new," Cherry said. "At least Dickie's doing okay."

"We gotta get to him," Yin advised. "He's gonna need all the help he can get..."

"All right, so he's at the pier, everyone, let's head that way!" Atticus told the others as he took charge.

"Right then. PAPARRAPAPA!!" Lionel chanted, teleporting everyone to the pier.

There they saw Dick forcing his dislocated arm back into its socket by slamming it against a pier support.

"That still sounds like a PlayStation game." Cherry said to Lionel before taking a look.

"No, you're thinking of Parappa the Rapper. This just sounds similar but is quite different." Lionel explained.

"Blast from the past..." Cherry said as that name suddenly brought back memories of her older brother playing video games.

They soon came to see Dick as he was in great pain.

"Dickie...?" Cherry frowned.

"Cherry...? That you...?" Dick grunted, glancing at her.

"Yes, it's me, it's okay..." Cherry said to him like a little sister.

Riley looked a bit surprised to see a caring side of Cherry since she was usually either cocky and sadistic with jokes or she was just dark and gloomy and more introverted.

"Well, she can be caring when she wants to be..." Lionel commented, as if sensing Riley's thoughts.... Or maybe he read the upper text.

"I'm just glad you didn't get killed." Cherry said to Dick.

"Same here..." Dick said to her, a bit weakly though.

"He's a little exhausted... But he'll be fine," Lionel urged. "Right now we hafta get him back to HQ to treat him."

"Yes, we should." Atticus, of course, agreed to that.

"Speaking of which, I wonder if there are any side-effects from a vampire or someone with vampiric traits consuming the blood of a 5th-dimension-native..." Lionel wondered.

"Uh... Not that I know of actually..." Cherry said to him. "That never really occurred to me." 

"Check your grandmother's book." Atticus said to her.

"I will." Cherry nodded as that would be quite helpful.

"I mean, some people say that it gives the drinker strange and phenomenal powers..." Lionel replied. "But only if the blood is given up willingly from the body of those who carry it. If it were stolen without consent... It would reject the one who stole it and remain dormant."

They soon brought Dick back to the Tower, and Cherry rushed over to her room to take out an ancient book which looked like it belonged to a witch, and not a mean woman, but like the mythical creatures that brew with cauldrons, fly on broomsticks, and have black cats.

"Ooh, mystic!" Riley exclaimed, glancing over Cherry's shoulder.

"Um, thanks..." Cherry said as she cracked the book open and flipped to the section about vampires and their bloodthirst.

"Alright, whaddo we got?" asked Yin.

"Well, I didn't drain Lionel of all his blood, so he won't die, but he also won't become a vampire either," Cherry said. "I have to be very careful when it comes to doing that, otherwise I might come off as a murderer. At least... That's what Selene taught me."

"Of course I won't die, I can just put more in my systems!" Lionel replied before asking, "By the way, who is Selene?"

"Oh, um, she's my vampire mentor," Cherry explained. "She's a Death Dealer, but she sort of helped me out when it came to this lifestyle."

"Cool." Lionel replied.

"According to this, I might go through some changes, but nothing too severe about biting inter-dimensional beings such as yourself," Cherry said to Lionel. "I only shudder to imagine what it would be like if I had bitten Trigon."

"Who KNOWS?" Lionel shivered.

"We're both all right though." Cherry said.

"Where did you get that magic book anyway?" Riley asked.

"My grandmother." Cherry said, a bit bashfully as she hugged the book in her arms.

"Okay, then..." Lionel decided. "So how do we track down our turncoat?"

"Turn... Coat...?" Cherry paused for a moment.

"Our mole, our traitor!" Lionel explained. "You know, Terra!"

Dick then held up a tracking device. "I might have an idea..."

Lionel thought for a few minutes, then shrugged. "It'll work..."

"Oh! Yeah..." Cherry replied. "Heh... I knew that."

"Of course you did." Riley rolled her eyes slightly.

"Nobody's gonna hold it against you." replied Yin.

"Hm." Cherry just gave them a look as she put her book away for right now.

"Also, it's nice to see that you really do care about Nightwing." Yin then said.

"Well... He's like a big brother to me sometimes." Cherry replied modestly.

"Aww... That's sweet," Yin smiled. "Now let's go find our teammates!"

"Let's go!" Cherry called out then.

And so, they moved out to get to work.


	9. Chapter 9

Meanwhile, inside a temple, Beast Boy woke up to find himself entrapped inside a glass tube. He noticed that Raven was also inside a tube, but she was unconscious. "Guys, Raven's not moving!" he explained.

"Not to mention this stupid machine's keeping us from using our powers...!" Yang grunted, trying and failing to reach for his sword.

Raven was knocked out as Beast Boy struggled.

"Something's keeping me from using my powers to morph!" Beast Boy then groaned as he tried to get free.

"Yeah, the machine's doing that," A male voice said as someone walked in to come and see them. "But, I'm the one who put you here."

"Deathstroke..." Blue Beetle growled.

Robin was restrained as well, but he was eerily silent.

"What'd you do to Robin?" asked Starfire.

"I beat the crap out of him for being mouthy," the assassin replied. "Oh, c'mon, you've all had the urge."

"Yeah, he's not wrong." Yang commented.

"Once I break out, I'm gonna beat you into little bits." Blue Beetle threatened.

"It's good to have goals, ese," Deathstroke replied. "Me, I'm having waffles, after you're dead."

Blue Beetle narrowed his eyes at him.

"By the way, can I introduce you to my assistant?" Deathstroke replied. "I think you've met."

And then, Terra stepped out from behind Deathstroke. "Hey, team," she smirked evilly. "What's up?"

Beast Boy was mortified. He couldn't believe it. "Terra... What'd you do to her?!" he shouted angrily.

"Nothing, and I've asked a bunch of times." Terra replied.

"Terra was a key part of my plan," Deathstroke informed. "A natural double agent."

"That can't be true!" Starfire frowned as she felt hurt.

"What can I tell you, Goldilocks? You win some, you lose some." Terra shrugged with a sly smile.

"So waitasecond..." Yang asked. "You mean that not only were you a spy, but YOU... And Slade.... Were...." his eyes widened in horror.

"I guess you finally put that brain to good use, Long Ears." Terra smirked.

Yang gaped in horror. "Oh, GOD!!!!" he gasped. "But you're sixteen... And he's literally old enough to be your father!!" He coughed out. "If I wasn't trapped in a tube I would SO vomit right now!"

"Hmph." Terra just rolled her eyes to that, feeling it was quite an immature response.

"Seriously?!? That is at least ten thousand kinds of WRONG!!" Yang gagged.

"Are you just about done?" Terra asked out of annoyance. 

"We took you in. Helped you." Blue Beetle said to her as they had been betrayed.

"Yeah, well, thanks," Terra said to him before nodding her head and began to exit. "Now you're gonna die."

"Well, there's gratitude for ya..." Yang commented as Deathstroke left with Terra. 

And Beast Boy was just... Devastated.

"Jeez, not a lot of gray area there, huh?" Deathstroke muttered on the way out.

"Terra..." Beast Boy whispered in heartbreak.

But for the time being, there was nothing that they could do. Beast Boy bowed his head as more people soon came into the room.

"Place reminds me of my parents' church," Terra murmured to herself. "Bunch of crazies."

A woman scoffed under her breath. "Insolent trash..."

"WHO YOU CALLIN' TRASH?!" Terra snapped, as her hands glowed yellow and rocks began rising around her.

"Keep it together." Deathstroke told the girl.

Terra then did her best to calm down.

"But our business...is not yet complete." Brother Blood explained.

"You wanted the Titans, so I got 'em." Deathstroke retorted.

"Not all of them. Not Nightwing, or any of his other little cohorts," Blood replied. "It ruins the machine's symmetry."

"We agreed some deaths might be unavoidable," Deathstroke reminded. "Things happen."

"I accept that, but I told you even in death there is life to be drawn," Blood stated. "Where is the body? Unless you have a body, you're one short. Therefore, our contract is not complete. Happily there is still a path to the salvation of our deal. Don't you agree?"

Deathstroke narrowed his eyes at first and soon nodded his head.

"Excellent.... Mayhem?" Blood smirked before looking to his female associate.

She smiled and pulled out a gun, then opened fire on Terra, injecting a small projectile into her arm. Terra quickly pulled it out, but then she began to feel dizzy, and stumbled around before she fell to the ground. Two people showed up and carted her body off.

"Terra!" Beast Boy cried.

Yang snorted. "Good riddance."

The two attendants hooked Terra's body up to the machine as she managed to struggle to stay awake.

"Slade... Help me...." she groaned.

"Sorry, kid," Deathstroke replied casually. "A deal's a deal."

"You'll pay for this..." Starfire groused.

"Shame you hafta go, sweet cheeks," Deathstroke shrugged. "We could've been fantastic lovers, especially since we're both.... Newly single."

Starfire's eyes widened as the machine began warming up.

"LET IT BEGIN!!" Brother Blood exclaimed.

The platform they were standing on began to emerge from the ground as hundreds of people cheered for Brother Blood.

"You think yourself a holy man, Blood?" Starfire scowled. "You're FILTH."

Blood just smiled. "Take heart, sinner, for you will soon become part of the greater good!" he replied.

"We're gonna SHOW you the greater good when we kick your ass!!" Blue Beetle growled.

Everyone struggled to break their bonds.

Damian scowled. "No god is going to save you, Deathstroke." he vowed.

"Word of the wise, Blood, whatever you're gonna do to them, do it quickly." Deathstroke stated to his associate.

Mayhem then started typing away at a keypad, and a red beam started charging up on the machine.

"CAN'T WE TALK ABOUT THIS FIRST?!" Yang cried out.

And then their restraints began to glow, causing them all to grunt in agony.

"I... Hope... You're happy with what... You.... Did....!" Yang grunted as he was writhing in pain.

"Not... Feeling... So... Good..." Beast Boy said as he sounded like he was dying.

"I consider their pain a retribution for their sins against me." Brother Blood smirked.

"Right..." Deathstroke said to him before abruptly leaving. "Have a nice day."

Two men prevented him from exiting.

"Oh, don't leave now, Brother," Blood told him. "Everyone stays for this part!"

"Oh? And what part is THAT... Brother?" asked Deathstroke.

"When their powers become mine and I ascend to God-state!" Blood announced.

The people continued to watch like mindless followers.

"Hail me, brethren, for the moment of ascendancy has arrived!" Blood told them.

"HAIL! HAIL! BROTHER BLOOD! HAIL! HAIL!" The people replied as Mayhem seemed to have joyful tears in her eyes.

"Yes, brethren!" Blood announced, approaching the machine as two handles glowing red came out. "This vessel shall transform me, and YOU! ARE! WITNESS!!" He began to spark with energy.

"Yes! Praise him!" Mayhem beamed. "All hail Brother Blood!"

Someone soon dropped down, dressed like the guards, but threw down the cloak to reveal that he was actually Nightwing. The men soon came to fight him off, but they didn't stand a chance against him. Mayhem took out a gun and tried to shoot at Nightwing, but Bat-Mite just ate the bullets and spat them out before Todd knocked the pistol away.

"Didn't your mom ever teach ya not to play with guns?" Riley chided.

"Didn't YOUR mother teach you not to interrupt?" Mayhem retorted.

"Eh," Todd shrugged. "She DID teach us to not let bad people do bad things. LG, Yin, SM! SHOWTIME!!"

And, as they were cued, Lady Gothika, Yin, and Sayia Man came out.

"I was always taught to never hit a lady." Sayia Man said to Mayhem.

Mayhem smirked to that at first.

"Unfortunately, I don't see you as such." Sayia Man then smirked and shot her with a Kaio-Ken.

Bat-Mite used one of his Batarangs and threw it at the red circle on the machine. The Batarang grew gigantic and let out a screech before it struck the machine, destroying it.

"Did we do that?" Lady Gothika smirked in a high-pitched voice to mimic Urkel.

"Eh, ain't we stinkers?" Bat-Mite added with a chuckle.

The followers ran off in a hurry, as the Titans' restraints unlocked, freeing them.

"I hope we're not too late." Lady Gothika frowned.

"I'm sure we're not." Sayia Man said to her.

"Oh, Yang." Yin frowned as she looked worried about her brother.

"Woo-hoo!" Yang shouted as he got free. "I'm back, I'm alive, and I'm mad as Hell!"

The others burst free, and Beast Boy turned into an elephant to burst out of the glass tube. Yin soon smiled once Yang was back to normal. Starfire soon happily ran into Nightwing's warm embrace once she and the other Titans were freed.

"I knew you'd come." Starfire smiled.

A blast was then shot which made them all yelp and jump out of the way.

"Siiiick..." Lady Gothika muttered about the transformation Brother Blood was given from draining the powers of the others.

"That jerk copied our powers!" Yang growled, wielding his sword.

Blood levitated himself off the ground using his newly-stolen Earth-bending power. Then, he sent a hailstorm of rocks at the team, which they quickly dodged. Beast Boy, however, saw Terra, who was still lying unconscious near the machine. But he did his best to ignore it and rushed into action. Meanwhile, Deathstroke was shoving people aside as he made his way to the exit, when...

"Hey, 'poppa'," Damian quipped. "Here's your PIPE!!" he lifted his staff and slammed it on Deathstroke's head with a CLANG!! And so he and Deathstroke engaged in a sword fight, with Nightwing joining in the battle shortly afterwards. 

Back in the main fight, Starfire launched an energy beam at Blood, but he just countered it with dark energy and used a blast of woo-foo power to knock her aside.

Then came Blue Beetle, who flew in... Only to get judo-flipped aside as Brother Blood morphed his hand into a cannon, blasted Beetle aside, and used the earthbending to knock Raven out of the sky.

"LEMME TELL YA SUMTHIN', BROTHER BLOOD!" Bat-Mite growled as he bulked up. "THE DARK-MITE IS ABOUT TO BRING DOWN THE HAMMERS OF JUSTICE ON YOUR UGLY HEAD, AND BOY-OH-BOY, WILL IT HURT LIKE THE DEVIL! AND SHOULD YOU EVER HARM LADY GOTHIKA, OR ANY OF MY FRIENDS, THE DARK MITE SHALL ENSURE THAT THE LAST FEW MOMENTS OF YOUR EXISTENCE ARE AS PAINFUL AS POSSIBLE!!!"

Blood scoffed, but this was only a distraction so Blue Beetle could recover and leap back into the fray, but so far, things weren't looking good for the heroes, since Blood and Deathstroke were certainly putting them through the wringer. 

But just then, Terra regained consciousness...and she remembered what had happened. "SLA-A-A-A-A-ADE!!!" she screeched in anger as rocks began to rise.

During that time, Blood had definitely given the Titans a serious thrashing. "Don't you know that I am the chosen?" he asked. "Don't you know I am divi--" but he was cut off when Terra's rock pile slammed into him.

"And don't you know when to shut up?" Yang retorted.

"Well, he certainly got uglier." Lady Gothika commented about Brother Blood's new look.

"No kidding," Bat-Mite commented. "But now we have a chance to take him down! So what're we waiting for, an engraved invite? Let's kick his chassis!"

"Ooh, I'm going to enjoy this..." Sayia Man smirked until his eyes changed into a different blue color and his brown hair turned blonde as he began to transform for a new mode.

"He's going Super Saiyan!" Bat-Mite exclaimed. "Magnificent! Blood doesn't stand a chance!"

"His ego... Is at OVER 9000!!!" Lady Gothika called out about her best friend.

"Nice reference, but someone else says that, good effort though." Sayia Man told his best friend.

"Meh." Lady Gothika shrugged as she didn't know Dragon Ball Z as well as he did.

"Whatever. Like the Biker Mice from Mars would say... It's time to Rock... And Ride!" Bat-Mite announced, as he began firing a frenzy of ki attacks at Brother Blood.

"Ah, yes." Lady Gothika agreed before she soon cracked her knuckles, and looked ready to fight like in Mortal Kombat which was her favorite video game, probably tying against Sonic the Hedgehog. 

"You will not defeat me, you're all a bunch of wannabes!" Brother Blood glared at Bat-Mite and his friends among the Teen Titans team.

"Says the guy who STOLE a buncha superpowers! What a hack!" Bat-Mite retorted, before morphing his hand into a giant mallet and slamming it down over Blood's head. "Stop... HAMMER TIME!!" Bat-Mite chuckled as tiny stars orbited Blood's head. "You think you're some kinda messiah? That you're the greatest thing since sliced pizza? Look, bozo, all you are is some raving, ranting dimwit who had to steal a buncha superpowers to make himself feel special. At your core you're just a sad, pathetic, weak little worm of a man."

"You're as annoying as a cereal mascot and twice as despicable." Brother Blood glowered.

"So what? You have brainwashed sheep. I have a genuine team of friends. Those powers aren't yours, so we intend TO BEAT THEM OUT OF YOU!!!" Bat-Mite boomed, plucking him out of the ground and then throwing him into a wall.

"I'LL MAKE YOU PAY FOR TRYING TO HURT MY BROTHER!" Yin yelled out to Brother Blood before using Woo Foo magic.

And Blood soon found himself being slammed into a wall yet again, before Todd delivered a flurry of super-speedy punches to his gut, and Riley tripped him, making him fall on his butt.

"You will not deny me my destiny..." Blood began before Blue Beetle zapped him with a chest laser. "You cannot harm..." and he was once again cut off by Beastboy, in gorilla form, who hand-slammed him over the head and punched him several times, followed by Yang delivering the Paws of Pain to his face at mach speed.

A white tiger then came out and lunged at Brother Blood, roaring quite loudly and aggressively, almost like Aslan from Narnia.

"He-Hey, it's Kimba!" Bat-Mite grinned. "Bringing the pain train to the station!"

Kimba looked to Bat-Mite and gave him a wink. 

"Kick his can, Kimba!" Lady Gothika told her tiger.

"Yeah! Go for the jugular, Kimba!" Yang added. Kimba nodded, and continued his battle.

"Phew!" Lady Gothika said, wiping her forehead.

"I will hunt you and end you!" Brother Blood threatened Kimba, fighting him back.

"Hunt THIS, douchebag!" Bat-Mite snapped, whirling around him like the Tasmanian devil. "If he's LG'S buddy, then by God, he's MY buddy too! And I protect my buddies!!!"

"He seems to like you a lot." Kimba told Lady Gothika.

"Yeah.... I dunno why." Lady Gothika shrugged.

"Well... You're the first friend I've ever had... Not to mention you're also my best friend..." Bat-Mite explained as he continued spinning. "Besides, I know you've got potential to be even greater than you already are, and learn not to let your shortcomings hold you back. I love you with all my heart, and as cheesy as that sounds, I mean every word of it...!"

Lady Gothika pouted only slightly, though she wasn't upset or angry, but she felt emotional to have someone say that about her.

"Now, if anyone has something to say it can wait until after this...but right now...I'll be sending him UP!" Bat-Mite concluded, using the tornado to send Brother Blood up into the air...and landing on his back.

"You stay away from me....you demon filth!" he growled, before Raven appeared behind him.

"I'm no demon..." she explained. "Let me show you one. Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" she chanted as her skin glowed red and from her emerged a shadowy bird with red energy around it.

"What the Hell is that?!" Brother Blood gaped.

The bird then engulfed him like a cloak, and then began to drain away his stolen powers, until he was dropped back to the ground, as a frail and weakened man.


	10. Chapter 10

"Alright, we won!" Bat-Mite beamed. "Now, what's with the look on your face, LG? We all beat the bad guy, and we had fun doing it, too!"

"Oh, I'm just thinking." Lady Gothika shrugged, shuffling her foot a bit.

"It was what I said during the tornado attack, right?" Bat-Mite asked.

"I'm just not used to being showered in compliments." Lady Gothika smiled bashfully.

"Maybe it's because you spend your free time insulting people." Yang smirked.

"Not now," Bat-Mite snapped. "Well, I like you a lot. Of course I'm gonna compliment ya. Even if in one timeline set in Victorian London, you're a high-class society girl and I happen to be part of a group of lovable, trouble-making yet well-intentioned street urchins!"

"Oh, don't get crazy now." Lady Gothika rolled her eyes to that.

"Yeah, like that'd ever happen." Sayia Man added after he returned back to normal after using his Kai powers.

"Hey, it's a big Multiverse," Bat-Mite replied. "You never know~"

Lady Gothika and Sayia Man just rolled their eyes as that sounded impossible, though Sayia Man did look perplexed. Kimba soon disappeared once he was done for the day.

"You okay, Raven?" Lady Gothika asked her close friend on the team.

"I-I'll be fine." Raven said softly.

Blood regained consciousness, but it wouldn't do him any good. Now that he was weakened and scrawny, he had no options left.

"Checkmate, Blood. The game is finished." Riley commented.

"Sorry, not sorry." Sayia Man added.

"I've planned so long... I was destined, can't you see?" Brother Blood gasped out. "Please, I beseech you! I am Blood! I--"

There were soon gunshots against him.

"I... Am... Blood..." Brother Blood uttered out until he fell dead, showing that Mayhem had shot him.

"What you are is DEAD," Yang scoffed. "Good riddance to big jerks, I say."

"Uh, thanks?" Sayia Man said to Mayhem.

"Saved... I won't let them cage you... My love..." Mayhem whispered, sounding slightly insane.

"The dame's nuttier than squirrel feces..." Bat-Mite whispered. 

But suddenly, the team noticed the crumbling rocks falling around them.

"C'mon!" Starfire shouted, and they raced for the exit.

"Don't have to tell us twice!" Sayia Man replied as they went to run.

"Aw, Sis, it's so nice that you helped me when you did." Yang smiled to Yin.

"We're family, even if you are a pain in the butt." Yin replied.

"Same-same, Todd!" Riley replied.

"Ah, thanks!....Hey!!" Todd realized.

Riley giggled to that, not-so innocently.

"Siblings." Sayia Man said.

"Oh, I'm sorry, you don't feel bad, do you?" Riley asked him.

"Not too bad, I mean, Cherry feels like a sister sometimes." Sayia Man smiled about his best friend and their relationship.

"Aw, that's nice..." Yang commented before getting serious. "NOW LET'S LEAVE ALREADY BEFORE WE GET SQUASHED!!"

"What about Deathstroke?" asked Todd.

"We leave him to face his mistakes, and pay for 'em!" Yang replied. "He brought this on himself, and he can take it to his grave!"

"And Terra?" Sayia Man then asked Yang.

Yang was silent. "She's given us a way out... And this is her way of redeeming herself for all the bad things she did...." he finally spoke.

"I knew she couldn't be all bad." Sayia Man said.

Bat-Mite sighed. "I guess you were right...apology accepted, Markov..." he replied as they left. 

Mayhem cradled Blood's corpse as they were crushed by a falling rock. And Terra cried out into the abyss as she used her geokinetic powers one last time to bring the temple down... With herself inside...

A few weeks later, Gar and Yang went in for their interview with Kevin Smith.

"So lemme ask you this, guys--how do you become a Titan, exactly?" asked Kevin. "I mean, is there an audition? Do ya look at videos? Cuz I been workin' out, y'know? I want in."

"Well, Kev, I guess the most important thing to being a Titan is to have a strong sense of family," Gar replied. "Some of us don't have our own, so we support the ones that do."

"Of course, a likable personality doesn't hurt, y'know, but you gotta have a power," Yang added. "Something cool!"

"Something cool--you turn into animals! And you're a martial-artist rabbit!" Kevin exclaimed. "Man, that's BEYOND cool!"

"Thanks," the boys replied. "But it's not just the cool superpowers, snazzy uniforms and daring adventures...it's about helping each other grow, be better people."

"Listen, I know you're not supposed to talk about this, but I gotta ask--there's a new girl, right?" asked Kevin.

"All I can say is, she's a Wonderful addition to the team," Yang winked.

"C'mon, guys," Kevin urged. "Starfire would kill us," Gar added. "There's no way Starfire's listening to this--she's brushing her hair!" Kevin joked.

"Forget it, my lips are sealed." Gar replied, before morphing into a seal and clapping.

"He just turned into a seal, folks; I swear," Kevin remarked. "But really, guys... Is she gonna replace Terra? There are lots of stories about her."

Yang sighed, and Gar resumed his human form. "We know."

Kevin drew in some air through his teeth. "Ooh, too soon?" he asked.

"Yeah... But we'd like to say something. There are a lot of people who've been handed a rough life. They never asked for it, but... They do what they can. Many of them can't rise above the hurt; it's just too hard. But in the end, when the chips were down, and she finally showed her true self... Terra Markov was like a diamond--the most beautiful thing we'd ever seen." Yang and Gar concluded, ending the interview as they headed home to Titans' Tower... And just in time for their next movie night...

The End


End file.
